Body of drowned kayaker found

A body pulled Saturday from the Brandywine Creek in Chester County has been identified as one of the kayakers involved in a fatal accident last Tuesday.

Chester County Coroner Robert Satriale said an autopsy performed last night resulted in a positive identification for the Rev. Chad Miller, 34, of Wilmington.

Chad Miller had been kayaking with his brother Christopher Miller, 28, of Yonkers, N.Y., when they were unable to navigate a dam in East Bradford Township. Employees from the nearby Brandywine Picnic Park saw the kayak overturn in the creek's storm-swollen waters, and alerted authorities.

Emergency workers found Christopher Miller, who taught English to foreign students in Tarrytown, N.Y., and he was pronounced dead a short time later at Chester County Hospital.

Despite an exhaustive search over several days, emergency workers could not locate the body of Chad Miller, a minister at Westminster Presyberian Church in Wilmington.

Satriale said the body was discovered Saturday by picnickers. He said Chad Miller's identification was confirmed through physical characteristics as well as the ID he had been carrying.

The accident occurred in the aftermath of storms that had generated strong undercurrents and rising waters. Commercial kayak operations had suspended rentals Tuesday because of the weather; however, the Millers used kayaks they had borrowed, police said.