Dad of kids who died thanks community
The parents were in a truck carrying seven kids when they attempted to cross the Bar X crossing.
Daniel Rawlings expressed his family’s gratitude at a Show Low City Council meeting on Jan. 7, thanking everyone for the support the community has shown following the loss of his two youngest children.
Willa Rawlings, 6, her brother Colby Rawlings, 5, and cousin Austin Rawlings, 5, died after being swept away in Tonto Creek floodwaters this past November, according to the Gila County Sheriff’s Office.
Parents Daniel and Lacey Rawlings were in a military-style truck carrying seven kids when they went around barricades and attempted to cross the Bar X crossing on Nov. 29, 2019, after heavy rains had caused Tonto Creek to swell, officials said. The truck got stuck.
The community has supported the parents because locals have crossed during floods for decades because the only other way in and out of the area east of Tonto Creek is an hours-long detour on dirt roads.
The bodies of Colby and Austin were later found, but it wasn’t until Dec. 13, 2019, that Willa’s body was recovered at Roosevelt Lake after an extensive search.
Rawlings said his family is honored to have been a part of the White Mountain community “for quite some time,” and delivered an emotional statement before the City Council.
“We would like to say thank you,” Rawlings read from a prepared statement. “And as I feel ‘thank you’ is not enough to express the love shown to me and my family, it is all I have to offer.”
Many people, churches and businesses helped the family “carry the burden,” Rawlings said in his statement.
“For all those who gave of their time to join in the search for our precious Willa, for those that prepared meals, for those that helped raised funds, both businesses and personal individuals, for those that welcomed us back home while standing in the freezing cold, to those who gave freely of their time and talents, we say thank you and may God bless you,” Rawlings said.
The Gila County Sheriff’s Office didn’t immediately respond to requests from The Arizona Republic for comment on whether or not charges were still being considered against parents Daniel and Lacey Rawlings.
4 deaths at Tonto Creek crossing in 2019
A fourth person, Robert George Petitte, 69, died as a result of Tonto Creek floodwaters less than two weeks after the three Rawlings children, according to the Gila County Sheriff’s Office.
Petitte’s body was found Dec. 7 about 200 yards away from Tonto Creek Shores where he was crossing, officials said. Two permanent road signs at the crossing warn against passing over floodwaters.
A recent grant application seeking funds for a bridge over Tonto Creek stated at least five other people have died in the water in the past 25 years.
Push for a bridge over Tonto Creek
Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey released an executive budget proposal for the fiscal year Friday. The budget doesn’t include money for the bridge that Gov. Ducey urged federal funding for in a letter to the U.S. Department of Transportation on Jan. 8.
“Last week, I called on the federal government to fund the Tonto Basin Bridge,” Gov. Ducey said in his 2020 State of the State address on Jan. 13.
The bridge would cost an estimated $20 million, and the federal government has rejected multiple applications amidst long-running desire by residents for construction.
“All throughout our priorities you’ll see a focus on rural Arizona,” Gov. Ducey said during the speech. “Because there are 15 counties and news flash: there are needs outside the ‘great state of Maricopa’.”