The body of Portland chef Naomi Pomeroy has been recovered from the Willamette River near Albany

People who were canoeing on the Willamette River on Wednesday morning spotted the body of Naomi Pomeroy, an acclaimed Portland chef who drowned over the weekend while floating in the river, the Benton County Sheriff’s Office said.

Her body was spotted at about 10 a.m. about a half mile upstream of Hyak Park between Corvallis and Albany.

Benton County deputies said her body was found in the middle of the river in about one to two feet of water.

Pomeroy, 49, drowned in the Willamette River near river mile 132 in Corvallis, about 100 yards upstream from the Mary’s River on Saturday.

She was with two other people. The sheriff’s office said three floaters on tubes and a paddle board, secured together, were caught on an exposed snag in the water.

One of the floaters, Pomeroy, was pulled under the water and held by the paddle board leash. She was not wearing a life jacket and, unable to resurface, drowned. Her husband, also one of the floaters, survived the incident.

On the day of the incident, rescuers found Pomeroy’s body underwater but were unable to recover it due to strong currents. Her body floated downstream, and authorities resumed the search on Sunday. However, due to the current and heavy debris, searchers were unable to find her.

One Wednesday, the deputies released Pomeroy’s body to a funeral home and notified her family.

Pomeroy first formally appeared on the radar when she opened the fine-dining restaurant Beast in 2007. She won the James Beard Foundation Award for Best Chef Northwest in 2014. A successful series of other restaurants, pop-ups, cookbooks, and more followed.

Beast shuttered in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and Pomeroy opened Ripe Cooperative, an at-home meal prep service, in the space.

KATU interviewed Pomeroy during the pandemic in 2021, which you can see HERE.

According to Pomeroy’s social media, her most recent culinary endeavor was Cornet Custands, a frozen custard shop run alongside her husband.

On Monday, Oregon Congressman Earl Blumenauer released a statement on the death of Pomeroy.

“What a loss. Naomi was not just a fabulous chef and entrepreneur, but an amazing human being," he said. "Her impact went far beyond Portland, helping establish our leadership and reputation for food excellence. She will be greatly missed.”

Also on Monday, mourners could be seen leaving flowers, candles, and heartfelt notes in a makeshift memorial outside Cornet Custards.

As the Portland community grieved the loss of her culinary prestige, she was also remembered for far more than just her food.

“Naomi was a co-founder of this independent restaurant coalition, which was a national organization that you know, fought for funds and other things for independent restaurants,” said Michael Russell, a restaurant critic for The Oregonian.

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Author: KATU News
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News post in at: July 19, 2024, 3:04 am.

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