Local Kayaker Found Dead Sunday Near Glasgow

A Buena Vista woman was found dead Sunday evening, after she fell out of her kayak on the James River near Glasgow on Saturday. A search and rescue effort discovered the body of Octavia Richardson, 20, under roughly 6 feet of water.

The Rockbridge County Sheriff’s Office began the search on Saturday evening, which grew to include members of the Virginia Conservation Police, the Glasgow Volunteer Fire Department, and other search and rescue organizations. Searchers first found Richardson’s kayak and oars, and later found her remains.

Richardson had been kayaking with another person, who was able to make it to shore and was treated for symptoms of hypothermia, according to Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources public information officer Shelby Crouch. Neither kayaker was wearing a life jacket.