This is normally a flatwater section of the river. So I don't know whether this is a whitewater incident or not. If so...class I.
Joseph W. Greiner
Sent: Monday, March 20, 2000
Subject:Drowning on the Deep River
Here's the Fayetteville Online article
Canoe capsizes; woman drowns Rescue workers recover the victim's body near the U.S. 421 bridge on Sunday.
By David Sinclair Staff writer
SANFORD-A Chatham County woman drowned Saturday night when a canoe she and her husband were in capsized in the swirling, debris-filled currents of the Deep River in Lee County. The woman?s body was found around 1 a.m. Sunday near the U.S. 421 bridge where the canoe tipped over, said Pat Garner, chief of the Lee County Volunteer Rescue Squad. Her name was not released because family members were still being notified Sunday night, said Ronnie Currin, the chief deputy for the county Sheriff's Department.
The woman's husband watched helplessly as his wife was trapped under the water by trees, limbs and other debris in the water, Currin said. "He told us that the currents pulled him right under the water," Currin said." He wasn't able to reach his wife." Garner said rescuers were called to the area around 8:25 p.m. Saturday. He said they found the husband, whose name was not released, hanging onto the top of the capsized canoe. He said they pulled him to shore with a rope. About 40 people assisted in the search. Garner said divers did not go into the water because the current was too swift. Garner said the search was hampered because the river level was higher than normal and because of all the debris. "She was apparently trapped between the debris and the canoe," Garner said.
The woman, who was from Bear Creek, was found almost directly under the canoe. Authorities said the husband and wife were not wearing life jackets. The couple was on the river with four other people in two other canoes.
