DEAD RIVER CLAIMS DUCKY PADDLER Poplar Hill Falls near West Forks, ME: June 24, 1995 DESCRIPTION: The Dead River has been a popular class III open canoe run in Maine for decades. Michael Pecce, 56, was on a guided trip when he fell out of his inflatable kayak in Poplar Hill Rapid, a long, bouncy stretch of water located towards the end of a long run. He managed to climb back in his I-K, but fell out again. A rope was thrown, but he did not grab hold. A heart attack is suspected. SOURCE: Newspaper clippings