Mom of 2 Found Dead Days After Boat Crash Near Niagara Falls. Search Continues for Missing Fiancé

A mother of two has been found dead just days after a boat crash in the Niagara River that also left her fiancé missing and presumed dead.

Natalie M. Sansivero, 46, was discovered on Friday, July 25, roughly a mile from where she and her fiancé, Jerome P. Williams, 66, were last seen. The couple’s 35-foot vessel reportedly collided with a concrete abutment near the North Grand Island Bridge on the night of July 23, according to New York State Police.

“She was found near the intakes before the Niagara Falls — an area that pulls in water for a hydroelectric station,” said Trooper James O’Callaghan, a spokesperson for the state police. “It’s an extremely dangerous section of the river, and the conditions made traditional search methods difficult.”

Williams, a prominent Buffalo businessman, was believed to be operating the boat when it struck the structure around 9:38 p.m. Both he and Sansivero were ejected into the water and did not resurface, witnesses told police.

Despite rescue efforts from bystanders and agencies including the U.S. Coast Guard and local sheriff’s offices, only Sansivero’s body has been recovered. The search for Williams is now considered a recovery mission, with authorities conducting coastal searches along the river above and below the falls.

Investigators say the couple were familiar with the area, making it unclear why the crash occurred. “It’s a massive obstruction,” O’Callaghan said. “We’re looking into several possible causes.”

Sansivero, of Grand Island, New York, leaves behind two children: a 21-year-old daughter, Gianna, and a 12-year-old son, Louis. In a message posted to a GoFundMe page, her family called her “a beautiful mother, daughter, sister, cousin, and friend to many.”

“Let’s all give back the light and love Natalie shared with this world to her children at this time,” the fundraiser stated.

Friends of Williams are mourning his likely death. Paul Cambria, who knew him for over two decades, told WGRZ, “We’re going to miss him big time. A guy like that brings value to the community.”

The incident is still under investigation, and officials are urging caution to boaters navigating the waters near Niagara Falls. The area is notoriously dangerous, with over six million cubic feet of water rushing over the falls every minute.

“If something goes wrong there,” O’Callaghan warned, “you’re going with the current — and that current leads directly to Niagara Falls.”