A 13-year-old Montana boy died in a river Wednesday after rescuing his sister during a tubing trip. Authorities recovered his body the following day.
Ephraim Dayley disappeared in the Clarks Fork River near Fromberg, Montana. The Carbon County Sheriff’s Office said search teams found his body Thursday at about 2 p.m. local time.
Carbon County Sheriff Josh McQuillam told MTN News that Dayley and his sister encountered trouble while tubing on the river.
“She had fallen off the tube or was attempting to get off, kind of unclear, but at some point she did get off the tube, was struggling to get back on where he tried to save her,” McQuillam said.
“And he managed to do that, but she was not able to get him. She made it to shore and he did not.”
Search-and-rescue divers searched the section of the Clarks Fork River where Dayley went underwater. The area was estimated to be between 6 and 10 feet deep. The Yellowstone County Sheriff’s Office also provided an emergency drone and helicopter to assist in the search.
“Ephraim was located underwater using specialized underwater technology,” the sheriff’s office said. “He was brought to shore, where he was officially pronounced deceased.”
Dayley, one of nine children, was remembered by loved ones and friends as an “amazing hero.”
“He was always there to lend a hand or to tell a funny story to make me smile. You will be so so missed Ephraim,” one person wrote on a GoFundMe page created to support his family.
