Portland chef Naomi Pomeroy drowned after buoys and a paddleboard got stuck in a river obstacle, authorities say

Authorities are still searching for the body of award-winning Portland chef Naomi Pomeroy, who drowned Saturday night when she was pulled underwater after her paddleboard leash or a strap connecting two or both inner tubes became snagged on a submerged tree as she floated on the Willamette River near Corvallis.

Pomeroy, 49, was one of three people floating on two tubes and a paddleboard that were connected when they hit an exposed obstacle about 100 metres up the Marys River.

The Benton County Sheriff’s Office initially said Pomeroy was “held by the paddleboard leash” underwater, but the sheriff’s office clarified that she may have been held by both the leash and a strap connecting the two air chambers.

Pomeroy has not resurfaced. The search for his body continued for four days on Tuesday.

When Pomeroy got stuck in the obstacle around 8:30 p.m., Pomeroy was sitting in one inner tube, while one of her companions was sitting in the other inner tube and the third person was sitting on the paddleboard, which was attached to Pomeroy’s leg by a leash, said Lt. Toby Bottorff of the Benton County Sheriff’s Office. All three people fell into the water after hitting the obstacle. Pomeroy got stuck while the other two floated downstream.

One of the others tried to swim against the current to help Pomeroy, Bottorff said, but was unable to reach him because of the strength of the current.

The two men later made it to shore and were picked up by Corvallis firefighters, sheriff’s officials said. Pomeroy was with her husband, Kyle Linden Webster, friends and family said. Authorities did not identify the third person, saying only that he was a man but not his age.

Corvallis Fire Department paramedics were the first to respond to the crash. When they arrived, they believed there could be as many as four victims, Deputy Chief of Operations Kevin Fulsher told The Oregonian/OregonLive.

Three rescuers reached Pomeroy by boat and tried unsuccessfully to pull her out of the water to begin CPR, Fulsher said.

The department’s rescue swimmer then fell into the water. Fighting the current, the rescue swimmer realized Pomeroy was entangled in a rope that was preventing her from moving. He pulled out a knife and cut the rope, expecting her to float to the surface of the river, where the rescuer hoped she could be more easily pulled into a boat for CPR, Fulsher said.

Instead, Pomeroy sank before the swimmer could grab her and rescuers lost sight of her.

“Every time we responded by saying we were going to rescue victims who could be rescued. That’s what our crews felt they could do,” Fulsher said. “They were very aggressive and put themselves in harm’s way to make that rescue, but we weren’t able to do that because of the difficult conditions.”

“Our hearts are broken for the victim and his family,” Corvallis Fire Chief Ben Janes said.

The sheriff’s office took over the recovery effort. In the four days since Pomeroy drowned, they have been unable to find her body, despite using sonar, underwater cameras and drones. A sheriff’s office boat was searching the river downstream from the problem Tuesday, but the river’s current and debris made the operation difficult.

Bottorff said Pomeroy’s body likely sank to the bottom of the river. He expects his body to resurface about five days after his death, he added.

The sheriff’s office will have a boat out on the river searching for her body every day through Sunday, he said, and will reevaluate which days to search for her after that if she is not found by then.

Challenges include relatively low visibility (about 3 to 5 feet) due to the fast current, as well as many rocky nooks and crannies on the river bottom.

While the sheriff’s office has deployed a boat on the river every day since Saturday, searchers also asked the public to “keep an eye out” for Pomeroy’s body. They advised people to call 911 and not attempt to retrieve it themselves.

“I am committed to finding Naomi and bringing her home to her family and loved ones,” Benton County Sheriff Jef Van Arsdall said in a statement. “I want to thank everyone involved in the search and recovery mission and their support during this difficult time.”

The Linn County Sheriff’s Office, Albany Fire Department and Albany Police Department all assisted the Benton County Sheriff’s Office and Corvallis Fire Department in search and rescue operations.

The sheriff’s office advised people not to tie themselves to their paddleboard unless their leash has a quick-release mechanism and advised against tying more than two inner tubes together. The Oregon State Marine Council on Tuesday urged people never to tie their ankles to a paddleboard on moving water, such as rivers, because of the danger that the leash could trap them underwater if they get tangled in rocks or trees.

“On a lake or other calm water, it is an excellent safety tool when used in conjunction with a life jacket,” the council said in a statement. “However, on moving water, the leash can be deadly.”

A homeless couple who live on a wooded embankment next to the Willamette said they watched the rescue operation unfold over several days, seeing drones in the air and several sheriff’s department boats on the water.

“We knew something was wrong,” Sandie Wendel said.

The couple had not seen any lifeguards along their stretch of the Willamette River Tuesday. On average, between 50 and 100 people travel down the river each day, they said.

Memorial posts for Pomeroy flooded social media Monday and Tuesday, with friends and colleagues calling Pomeroy a “Portland culinary titan” and a culinary “rock star” who changed the face of American cuisine.

Pomeroy was a self-taught chef who rose to fame with a pop-up restaurant in her home. She and her partner went on to open several high-profile restaurants and gain exposure in magazines and on television.

Pomeroy’s Beast restaurant was named co-Restaurant of the Year by The Oregonian in 2008. In 2013, she competed on “Top Chef Masters,” and the following year, she was named Best Chef in the Northwest by the James Beard Awards.

She is survived by her husband and daughter August. No memorial service has been announced.

Last month, Pomeroy and business partner Luke Dirks launched a new dinner series called Garden Party in a secluded garden near the neighborhood bistro they planned to open at 4537 SE Division St. this fall.

The duo had planned to host four more dinners this month, including one on Thursday and one on Friday, as part of a series they said would continue through the end of the summer and possibly beyond. Those events have been canceled.

“WE WILL SEE YOU ALL AGAIN!!,” Pomeroy wrote in a message announcing the June 26 dinners. “I can’t wait to cook with you again!!!”

Journalist Michael Russell contributed to this report.

— Fedor Zarkhin is a breaking news and crime reporter. He can be reached at 971-373-2905; fzarkhin@oregonian.

— Tatum Todd covers crime and public safety. Contact them at [email protected]or 503-221-4313.

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