Body found in the Susquehanna River

By Jaime North
The Daily Item

May 31, 2009 08:00 am

— SUNBURY — A fisherman on Saturday evening found a decomposed body floating in the North Branch of the Susquehanna River across from the Sunbury Airport Campground.
Trooper Ronald Zanella, of the Stonington state police barracks, said Saturday night the body was too decomposed to determine whether it was male or female. Foul play is not suspected at this time, Zanella said, adding that the investigation will continue as the body was taken to a morgue in Sunbury.
Zanella reported at 12:48 a.m. today that the body was the remains of a female. He said an autopsy will be scheduled.
Sunbury and Shamokin Dam water rescue teams were called just before 6:30 p.m. to the river, where crews located the body on the Northumberland riverbank less than a mile north of Fantasy Island Campground in Upper Augusta Township.
Crews remained on the river for more than three hours as several state police officers arrived, including a forensic investigator from Montoursville. The body was brought back to a boat launch at the airport campground shortly after 9:15 p.m. and taken to the morgue.
The Northumberland County coroner’s office, Americus Ambulance Service and Sunbury fire police were also at the scene.
The water temperature when crews returned was 65.2 degrees, according to the Sunbury rescue team.
State police did not identify the fisherman. Sunbury fire police closed the entrance to the campground for more than three hours while the search took place.
-- E-mail comments to jnorth@dailyitem.com.