On Friday, a woman’s body was found along the Gale River in Bethlehem, N.H.
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Officials said the body closely matches the description of missing hiker Clairemarie Cocuzzo, 64, of Westwood, Massachusetts.
Claire Marie Cocuzzo of Westwood had planned to hike in the forest from Oct. 5 to Oct. 10, according to a statement from the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department. A family member reported her missing when she did not return home.
Cocuzzo is described as 5-foot-2, 120 pounds, with gray hair and brown eyes.
Crews searched the area on Thursday but did not find her.
Fish and Game officials said it appears the person might have been trying to make a unsafe river crossing but got swept away in water swollen by heavy rain.
Cocuzzo was last seen at the Galehead Hut on September 29, officials said.
Responders participating in the search effort today included NH Fish and Game Department Conservation Officers; volunteers from Pemigewasset Valley Search and Rescue, Androscoggin Valley Search and Rescue and the Upper Valley Wilderness Response Team; and personnel from the US Forest Service. The Grafton County Sheriff’s Department and Bethlehem Police also provided support.
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Officials urged hikers to check weather and trail conditions before hiking this fall.
