Accident Database

Report ID# 33233

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Accident Description

Elsewhere along the Shenandoah River in Page County, search efforts are ongoing for New Jersey man Edward Piccola, last seen in Luray on May 31, preparing to go kayaking on the Shenandoah River after disappearing from his home the day before. He went missing as the river rose above flood levels. 

UPDATE: HIS BODY WAS FOUND AT A CAMPSITE AND HIS DEATH WAS RULED A SUICIDE.

Unsure of many of the details.  The following is taken from the website below. This is a very well-used, tame stretch of river at normal flows. 

http://www.whsv.com/content/news/Crews-searching-for-missing-New-Jersey-man-in-Page-County-484847581.html

Several weeks after crews began searching for a New Jersey man who was last seen buying a kayak in Luray, his body has been found.

According to the Page County Sheriff's Office, Edward Piccola was located in Clarke County on Sunday, June 17. That's about 50 miles from where he had last been seen, though it was never clear how far he had kayaked.

Piccola was reported missing from Hopatcong, New Jersey on May 30 and seen buying a kayak, life vest, and other camping equipment in Luray a day later.

Then, on June 3, deputies traced a vehicle at a public boat landing in the Page Valley Estates area back to Piccola.

That was at the end of a weekend when heavy rains brought the river above flood stage and led to flooding across many areas of the Valley.

Several days later, the search for Piccola had to be suspended to due to additional severe weather along the river.

Then, on June 15, another search for a missing kayaker on the Shenandoah River came to an end with rescue crews finding the body of Gary Alan Price near the Town of Shenandoah.

On June 17, the Clarke County Sheriff's Office found an unidentified body on the bank of the Shenandoah River at a campsite, in the area of Ellerslie Rd, just south of Berryville. Two days later, the Virginia Office of the Chief Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed the body to be that of Piccola, and his family was notified.

The Clarke County Sheriff's Office told WHSV they don't suspect any foul play involved in his disappearance.

Crews from many local agencies helped with the search, including Page County Emergency Services, Blue & Gray Search and Rescue, Virginia State Police, Virginia Game and Inland Fisheries, VDEM, Clarke County Sheriff’s Office, Hopatcong Police Department, (New Jersey), and the Sussex County Prosecutors Office.

Several weeks after crews began searching for a New Jersey man who was last seen buying a kayak in Luray, his body has been found.

According to the Page County Sheriff's Office, Edward Piccola was located in Clarke County on Sunday, June 17. That's about 50 miles from where he had last been seen, though it was never clear how far he had kayaked. Piccola was reported missing from Hopatcong, New Jersey on May 30 and seen buying a kayak, life vest, and other camping equipment in Luray a day later.

Then, on June 3, deputies traced a vehicle at a public boat landing in the Page Valley Estates area back to Piccola. That was at the end of a weekend when heavy rains brought the river above flood stage and led to flooding across many areas of the Valley.

 

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