Kelly SullivanThe Snohomish County Medical Examiner's Office has identified the body recovered from the Skykomish River last week as that of Shauna R. Geffon, the 25-year-old Texas woman who disappeared in the water east of Index on June 27.
Geffon died from freshwater drowning, according to the Examiner’s Office, which ruled her death as accidental. The Snohomish County Sherriff’s Office Rescue and Dive teams began the recovery process on Tuesday, July 11, two weeks after she fell in.
Geffon's body was floating upside down in the South Fork. Sheriff’s spokesperson Shari Ireton said a resident in the area called in the discovery.
Fire District 26 crews first responded to the scene, but “realized there was not going to be any way to revive her,” she said.
Geffon had been sitting on a rock by the falls with her mother when she first fell in. Her mother, who lives in the area, looked away for a period of time. When she looked back, her daughter was gone.
Geffon's mother said she searched the area on foot but found no sign of her daughter. The June 27 incident came less than two weeks after 49-year-old Adrian B. Jovanovic fell in the water at the same spot while out walking in the area with his 32-year-old girlfriend.
Rescue efforts for both people were hindered by cold, fast moving water coming over the falls. It was deemed to dangerous to put anyone in the water. When Jovanovic first fell in, underwater sonar and camera equipment was used to search below the river's surface.
A witness discovered Jovanovic’s body floating downstream of the falls on July 1. Days later, the sheriff's office was finally able to put a few divers in. Water levels had dropped enough, so the sonar equipment was deployed again, as were boat operators and three crewmembers that remained on shore as spotters or to work the devices. Photo by Kelly Sullivan: A Texas woman who fell into the Skykomish River on June 27 was recovered in the South Fork on Tuesday, July 11.
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