More News

The body was removed by Montgomery County Fire and Rescue at 5:30 p.m., three hours after it was spotted by a U.S. Park Police Helicopter, Montgomery County Fire Chief Richard Bowers said.

Medical authorities are determining if the body is that of Olga Arotinco Gaspar, 35, or her daughter, Emily Escalante Arotinco, 13, of Herndon, Va., Bowers said.

Montgomery and Fairfax county fire and rescue departments, U.S. Park Police, National Park Service, and D.C. Metropolitan Police Harbor Patrol gathered at a press release Thursday morning outside Old Angler's Inn to stress the dangers of the river.

River safety signs posted in English, Spanish and Vietnamese are on both sides of the river, and officials are continuing public outreach through videos, social media and press, Bowers said.

Monday's 9-1-1 call about the missing women was not in English, and there was initially some confusion when rescuers arrived on the scene 11 minutes later, Bowers said.

Recovery efforts will continue for the mother and the daughter, who are from Peru and speak Spanish, Bowers said.

The mother and daughter spent Memorial Day with family and friends hiking on the Virginia side of the river to a spot near Difficult Run Trail and the Madeira School in McLean, Va., where they reportedly slipped and fell in the water.

Rescue crews had shifted to a body recovery effort Tuesday evening after searching since Monday.