Officials in Flathead County say a 57-year-old Kalispell woman drowned after the raft she was in overturned in the Flathead River.
Sheriff Chuck Curry says Brenda Reiner and her husband were in the raft when it overturned Sunday afternoon at a spot where the river splits at an island.
Reiner’s husband was able to make it to shore and called for help at about 4 p.m. Curry says Reiner was caught by a tree protruding from the island, held underwater and drowned.
Curry says both were wearing lifejackets and alcohol was not believed to be a factor. He called the drowning a tragic accident.