Medical examiner confirms ID of body found at Grand Canyon

A medical examiner's office has confirmed a body recovered from the Grand Canyon is that of a missing Southern California man.

Park officials had suspected it was 67-year-old Mike Howard from Simi Valley but were awaiting confirmation.

His body was pulled from downstream of Phantom Ranch on Sept. 14, about 10 miles from where he last was seen a week earlier. The cause and manner of death were unavailable.

Authorities say Howard tried to rescue his wife when she slipped into the Colorado River during a commercial rafting trip. Both swam through a river rapid.

Others in the group that was setting out for a day hike pulled Howard's wife from the water. A multi-day search for Howard turned up no sign of him.