A WOMAN who was missing for a week has been found on her boat, along with the body of her husband after he died of a suspected heart attack.

Maria das Graças Mota Bernardo and José Nilson de Souza Bernardo, both 68, set off on the fishing trip on 28 March.

The couple had planned to return two days later, but a search operation was launched when they failed to arrive home on time.

They brought two vessels with them on the trip down an Amazonian river called Rio Negro, in the heart of Brazil.

They had a fishing boat and a smaller canoe for exploring flooded Amazonian forests.

Worried family members alerted the authorities when they discovered the couple’s canoe tied to a tree, with no sign of them.

Rotting fish was found inside the canoe, and a net was still stretched out in the water to catch fish.

The Civil Police, the Navy and the local fire department then launched an extensive search operation.

On April 4, the Brazilian Navy found the couple’s vessel adrift in Iranduba, about 100 miles (161 km) from their departure point.

Maria had to spend several days alongside her beloved husband’s corpse after he apparently suffered a heart attack while fishing.

A Navy helicopter rescued Maria from the scene and officials administered first aid and support for the bereaved woman.

She was then flown to Manaus for medical checks, while the fire department transported her husband’s corpse to a hospital morgue.

Authorities will carry out an autopsy on the body to establish his exact cause of death.

The Navy confirmed that an investigation is underway.

Earlier this year, a woman drowned in a fishing boat tragedy off the coast of Brazil, just hours after posting gleeful videos of her expedition.

Michele Bayerl de Moraes de Sena posed for a selfie video while out at sea, before a heavy storm hit the vessel she was in.

Tragically, the boat capsized, and she died alongside her husband Evandro Jose de Sena.

According to reports, the six survivors avoided death by clinging to the hull after the boat capsized.

They were picked up by a passing vessel and given first aid.