Rural Alaska

Body of missing Northwest Alaska man found in Kobuk River after boat capsized

The body of a man who was missing on the Kobuk River after a boat capsized earlier this week has been found, Alaska State Troopers said.

Kiana resident Brandon Sheldon, 30, had been missing since Monday evening, when a boat capsized on the Kobuk River north of Noorvik. Four other people who were onboard at the time were safe and contacted authorities, troopers said.

Search and rescue crews found Sheldon’s body in the Kobuk River upstream of Noorvik around 8:45 a.m. Friday, troopers said in an online update.

His next of kin have been notified, troopers said, and so has the State Medical Examiner Office.

Dozens of volunteers from Noorvik, other villages and the Northwest Arctic Borough were involved in the search for Sheldon this week.

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