Five children among Arizona flood victims
Nine people killed were part of extended family
TONTO NATIONAL FOREST, Ariz. — Five children were among the nine people killed in a flash flood at an Arizona swimming hole during the weekend, and all were part of an extended family, authorities said Monday.
Three generations of the family were gathered Saturday at the swimming spot about 100 miles northeast of Phoenix, police said. Torrential rains in the fire-scarred mountains miles away unleashed 6-foot-high floodwaters and swept away the victims.
Searchers looked Monday for a 27-year-old man who was the only person still missing from the group of 14 family members who gathered at the swimming hole in the Tonto National Forest north of Payson.
About 40 volunteer workers and four search dogs were looking for the man, Gila County Sheriff J. Adam Shepherd said.
Disa Alexander was hiking to the swimming area where Ellison Creek and the East Verde River converge Saturday when the water suddenly surged. Video she posted to social media showed torrents of water surging through jagged canyons carved in Arizona’s signature red rock.
She spotted a man holding a baby and clinging to a tree. Nearby, his wife was also in a tree.
Some search and rescue team members were already near the swimming hole after getting a call to help someone who had suffered a bad allergic reaction, Sgt. David Hornung with the Gila County Sheriff ’s Department said.
Four people were rescued and treated for hypothermia.
Those killed included five children — 2-year-old Erica Raya-garcia; Emily Garnica, 3; Mia Garnica, 5; Danial Garnica, 7; and Jonathan Leon, 13. Also killed were Javier Raya-garcia, 19; Selia Garcia Castaneda, 57; Maribel Raya-garcia, 24, and Maria Raya-garcia, 27.
The National Weather Service estimated up to 1.5 inches of rain fell over the area in an hour. The thunderstorm hit about 8 miles upstream along Ellison Creek, which quickly flooded the narrow canyon where the swimmers were.
Hornung noted that the National Weather Service had issued a flash flood warning, “but unless they had a weather radio out there, they wouldn’t have known about it. There is no cellphone service out here.”