DOVER, N.H. – Divers in New Hampshire have recovered the body of a 12-year-old boy from a river where they believe he fell through the ice and drowned.

The body of Nathaniel Boily, of Dover, was recovered at about 1 p.m. Friday from the Bellamy River. Boily had been missing since Thursday afternoon. Authorities said his backpack was found on the shoreline beneath a bridge Friday morning, along with footprints leading onto the ice and a frozen-over disturbance in the otherwise smooth, ice-coated river.

Police said Nathaniel was last seen leaving Dover Middle School on Thursday. Family members contacted police when he didn’t return home. Temperatures were in the teens.

Police said that while the cause and manner of his death will be determined by the medical examiner’s office, it appears to be an accidental drowning.

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