Officials have identified the body discovered last week near Tuntutuliak as 26-year-old Dillon Lamont of Tuluksak. Lamont went missing two years ago, in April of 2016, when he broke through the rotting Kuskokwim River ice near a Tuluksak fish camp. That spring marked the river’s earliest break up on record.
Three people fell through the ice that day; Lamont was the only one who didn’t make it out. When it happened, Search and Rescue groups quickly mobilized to recover the body. Bethel Search and Rescue supplied an underwater camera, along with other equipment, and flew an aerial search over the river. But within a week, the groups called off their efforts. The river had begun mushing out, and the Kuskokwim had grown too dangerous to travel. Ice had begun shifting, and open holes were appearing.
Now, two years later, Lamont’s recovery is complete. A couple discovered his body on May 13 while gathering driftwood near Tuntutuliak. It had washed ashore and presumably traveled downstream with breakup.
The couple stayed with the body until a Tribal Police Officer arrived. The body was then sent to Anchorage where medical officials used dental records to make the identification of Dillon Lamont.
