07:16 AM PDT on Thursday, October 7, 2004

Associated Press

SPRINGFIELD, Ore. -- Crews recovered the body of a retired Springfield firefighter who had been missing since his drift boat flipped on the Rogue River last week.

Rogue River. (File photo)

Ken Robinson, 51, of Marcola was working as a river guide when his boat capsized in a narrow section of the river known as Coffee Pot, so named for its roiling waters, swirling eddies and cross currents.

His two clients, an elderly couple, were wearing life jackets and were rescued. Robinson, who was not wearing a life jacket, went under and was not seen again until his body was found Wednesday.

The woman went under with Robinson after the boat flipped, and told rescuers that she felt him push her to the surface, said his widow, Janet Robinson.

"He was a good husband and a good father," she said. "He was there for his sons."

Springfield Fire Chief Dennis Murphy said Robinson's death has left the department in shock.

"It's almost dumbfounding," Murphy said. "This is the last person anyone would have expected to die this way."

The accident happened in Mule Creek Canyon, about 40 miles upstream from Gold Beach. At the Coffee Pot, the river narrows to about 15 feet, with sheer rock walls on either side of the channel.

It's the same spot where University of Oregon law professor Chapin Clark died in a similar boating accident in October 2002.

Robinson was a skilled and experienced river guide. He led at least 100 trips down the Rogue, and guided trips on the McKenzie River and the Middle Fork of the Salmon River in Idaho.