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Family remembers Helene Brandy, kayaker found dead in Ohio River

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LEETSDALE, Pa. — A woman found dead in the Ohio River has been identified as a kayaker who has been missing for more than a week.

"What it's been is a big exhale for the family," said Ken Brandy, the uncle of Helene Brandy. "Not knowing where she was, bringing the body back home, that was (the) biggest concern."

The body of 25-year-old Helene Brandy, of Coraopolis, was found Sunday in the Ohio River on the Aliquippa side at the staging area in Leetsdale, just before the Aliquippa Bridge.

Brandy and her friend, Brittany Evans, were swept over the Dashields Dam in their kayaks last Saturday.

Evans' body was found shortly after the accident. Brandy's family had spent the last week searching for her.

"This is something you never get over," Ken Brandy said. "It'll always be with you."

Graham Maxwell and a friend went out fishing on their boat Sunday afternoon. As they scanned for new fishing holes up and down the Ohio River, they came across a body floating near a red crane just before the Aliquippa Bridge.

“As we came around the front of some barges that we were scanning, we saw her floating in the water,” Maxwell said.

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They found staff with the Fish and Boat Commission, who were already on the river searching.

“They called out the rest of the rescue services to recover her,” Maxwell said.

Last week, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers pledged to add more signs warning boaters that they are close to the dam.

"Our next goal is to push forward and see if we can get some improvement, because too many people have died on that dam and we would like this to be the last people that die on that dam," Ken Brandy said.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is holding an educational summit in June.

Stay with Channel 11 News and WPXI.com for the latest updates.

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