Arizona professor found dead days after husband tried to save her in Mexico kayaking tragedy

Couple disappeared on Thanksgiving afternoon after father brought daughter to safety

After days of searching, an American professor who disappeared along with her husband while kayaking in Mexico has been confirmed dead.

The president of Northern Arizona University released a statement on Sunday informing the faculty and student body of the news of the passing of Professor Yeon-Su Kim.

Mexican authorities said earlier in the day that a body had been found in the search for Ms Kim and her husband Corey Allen. A family friend confirmed this on a fundraising page.

On the afternoon of Thanksgiving, the couple from Flagstaff, Arizona, disappeared in bad weather off Puerto Peñasco on the Gulf of California, also known as Rocky Point Beach.

They were out on the water with their 14-year-old daughter when very strong winds came in, making conditions dangerous.

Mr Allen reportedly got the teenager to the beach, according to a GoFundMe page set up by a family friend, and then went back to help his wife, but neither of them returned.

State emergency services posted a photo of the couple on Twitter on Saturday afternoon and said it was coordinating the search.

According to Lisa Aumack, the organiser of the fundraising page, volunteers spent two days flying, boating, and searching overland with the additional help of the Mexican Navy before Ms Kim’s body was found.

On Sunday an update was posted to the page: “Today was an incredibly sad day. Earlier this afternoon, a local fishing boat came upon Yeon-Su’s body south and east of Puerto Peñasco.”

The search for Mr Allen will go on, with money raised online being put toward the cost.

Ms Kim was the executive director of the School of Forestry at Northern Arizona University and Mr Allen was a real estate agent.

They travelled to Mexico for the holiday weekend with their daughter. They also have a college-age son studying in Portland, Oregon, who was not with them.

NAU President Jose Luis Cruz Rivera wrote in the Sunday night statement: This evening, after days of search and rescue efforts, the tragic passing of Yeon-Su was confirmed. The search for Corey continues.”