SEATTLE — It was a Seattle woman who drowned Saturday in a rafting accident on the Stillaguamish River, officials said.
Ann Marie McKinnon, 31, of Seattle, was pulled from the river but died a few hours later at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, the King County Medical Examiner’s Office said Monday.
Her death, which was ruled an accident, was caused by asphyxia because of fresh-water drowning.
McKinnon had become tangled in river debris while floating near Blue Stilly Park, east of Arlington.
The woman had been rafting with friends before she got caught in the current, officials said. She drifted into a “strainer,” a term that describes trees, root balls and branches in the water that can catch people and pin them.
Her friends called for help and tried to pull her free.
Rescuers estimated she was trapped for 45 minutes. She didn’t appear to be wearing a life jacket.
Since her death, McKinnon’s friends have taken to social media to share their grief and console each other. They described her as a caring person who loved life.
One friend wrote, “She was super fun and a very cool person as well as a great supporter of the local music scene. You will be missed girl thanks for the laughs.”
Friends are planning a candlelight vigil for McKinnon on Tuesday night.
They plan to meet around 6 p.m. at One-Eyed Jack’s Roadhouse at 14019 Highway 99 in Lynnwood and then drive to Blue Stilly Park to hold the vigil around 8 p.m.
Police, fire and rescue crews have been worried for months about rafting-related trouble. The rivers are particularly bad this year after a long, punishing winter. They are running high, cold and fast.
On Sunday, a teenage girl was rescued from the water after she was caught in another strainer on the Stillaguamish River near River Meadows Park, also near Arlington.
The girl clung to a tree stump jutting out of the water for nearly 30 minutes, officials said. A combined water rescue team was able to pluck her from the river.
Since 2008, at least six other people have died in boating-related accidents in the Snohomish County area.
Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com.
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