A man who drowned in the Columbia River near Kalama has been identified as Jeffrey W. Ferguson of Cornelius, Ore., the Cowlitz County Sheriff’s Office reported Wednesday morning.
Ferguson disappeared on May 20 after leaving the Scappoose Bay marina in his fishing boat. His family reported him missing, triggering a massive search. Two days later, his boat was found anchored and empty in the Multnomah channel.
When his body was found in the river near Kalama on Tuesday, a Cowlitz County coroner ruled his death as an accidental drowning, according to the sheriff’s office.
