Man’s body found floating in Crooked River

A report of a body seen floating in the Crooked River Tuesday afternoon triggered a recovery effort that took more than seven hours and over two-dozen personnel, Deschutes County sheriff’s deputies said.

Jefferson County dispatchers notified their Deschutes County counterparts of the report around 12:25 p.m., said Deschutes sheriff’s Sgt. Troy Gotchy.

Jefferson County deputies responded to the area and confirmed the body was in the river below the railroad crossing at the Ogden Wayside, north of Terrebonne and just west of Highway 97, he said.

Deschutes County deputies and Sheriff’s Search and Rescue members responded, along with the Crooked River Ranch Fire Department. Gotchy said more than 25 personnel from SAR and CRR Fire worked for over seven hours to recover the body from the river.

The victim had not been identified by Tuesday evening, and the cause of death was not yet known, Gotchy said. Deschutes County sheriff’s detectives are continuing the investigation.

While suicides have occurred over the years from the new and older bridges that span the Crooked River Gorge, the sergeant said it was too early to draw any conclusions. The body did not appear to have been in the river for a long period, Gotchy said, estimating the time at within about a day.