Officials: Woman found dead in Colorado flood; death toll reaches 8

9/23/2013
ASSOCIATED PRESS

DENVER — The body of a woman killed in the Colorado flooding has been found beside a river, authorities said today, bringing the death toll to eight.

The Larimer County Sheriff’s Department said the victim is believed to be a 79-year-old woman who was previously listed as missing and presumed dead. Authorities initially said she was 80.

The department said the woman was found on the bank of the Big Thompson River on Saturday. It was not clear why the death wasn’t announced until today.

The woman’s name was not released.

Two other people are still missing and presumed dead — a 60-year-old woman and a 46-year-old man, both from Larimer County.

The number of unaccounted for people dwindled to six as improving communications and road access allowed authorities to contact 54 people over the weekend who had not been heard from.

Meanwhile, Vice President Joe Biden arrived today in Colorado for a helicopter tour to survey the damage and recover efforts.

Biden’s plane landed at Buckley Air Force Base in suburban Denver, and the vice president boarded an Army Black Hawk helicopter.

He planned to make public comments later with Gov. John Hickenlooper and Craig Fugate, administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The floods caused damage across 17 counties and nearly 2,000 square miles.