A body found Saturday in the Rogue River downstream from Galice was identified as Lynn Boyum, 68, of Grants Pass, who was swept away in a strong current May 12 at Indian Mary Park while trying to retrieve her dog, according to the Josephine County Sheriff’s Office.

Her husband, Danny Boyum, 72, of Grants Pass, tried to save her, but he died, too. He was pulled from the water by bystanders. The dog survived.

In the aftermath of the double tragedy, searches of the park area and river didn’t locate Lynn Boyum until her body was spotted Saturday by a rafter, hung up on a branch about 10 feet from shore near Argo Recreation Site, according to Josephine County Undersheriff Travis Snyder. The Argo site is about 10 river miles downstream from the park.

The agency waited until Lynn Boyum was found before releasing her name and the name of her husband, out of consideration for the family, according to Snyder.

“This is a step toward closure for the Boyum family,” he said Tuesday. “Until she was found that was an open wound.”

According to sheriff’s office reports, witnesses said the Boyums were down by the park’s boat ramp with their dog when the animal swam to the other side of the river and wouldn’t return. Lynn Boyum then tried to retrieve the dog, but she became overwhelmed by the swift current. Danny Boyum threw a rope to her without success and entered the water, but he, too, became overwhelmed and went under.

A bystander pulled Danny Boyum from the water and immediately began CPR, according to Austin Prince of Rural/Metro Fire. A pulse was regained and Boyum eventually was transported unconscious by ambulance to a local hospital, Prince said, but Boyum didn’t recover.

The dog got out OK and was being cared for by family.

The couple had been camping at the park, which is located about seven miles west of Merlin, along a stretch of the river known as its recreational section, where boaters and swimmers flock on hot days. The high temperature that day in Merlin was in the upper 80s and the river temperature at Grants Pass was a cold 57 degrees. Snyder estimated the river flow that day at a strong 6,000 cubic feet per second, with the river level higher than it had been for years at that time of year.

Since then, the river flow has lessened, with the flow Tuesday at Grants Pass at 3,000 cfs and the water temperature at 59.9 degrees, according to the city of Grants Pass.

Snyder said the deaths were a tragic reminder of how dangerous the river can be. Prince said the current can be deceptively swift below the surface and that cold water will quickly affect muscle function.