Body Of South Berwick Woman Recovered From Saco River

Divers recovered the body of a 38-year-old South Berwick woman from the Saco River Tuesday, The Maine Warden Service said.

The body of Jennifer Bousquet was pulled from the river shortly after noon, about 350 yards downstream from where game wardens believe she entered the water, Cpl. John MacDonald, public relations and information officer for the Maine Warden Service, said Tuesday.

Bousquet was reported missing after her canoe overturned last Saturday. Her boyfriend, Brian Day, 54, also of South Berwick, was also in the canoe and able to make it to safety.

Her body was located in about eight feet of water by a game warden diver.

With the recent rains, river levels were high and conditions were dangerous for divers, MacDonald said. High water levels, poor visibility, cold water temperatures and considerable river debris challenged divers during the four-day search. Additional search equipment, including remote cameras, were used underwater to search hard to reach and dangerous areas containing debris.

Search and rescue K9 teams from the warden service were also deployed to comb the river's shorelines.

Life jackets were located at the scene, but Bousquet was not wearing one when her body was recovered.

The incident remains under investigation by the warden service.

Game wardens are also investigating a separate incident in which two Fryeburg police officers crashed their patrol boat on the Saco River as they responded to Bousquet's location. One officer involved in the crash remained in critical condition Tuesday at Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston.