Girl, 10, drowns in Pope County

Authorities recovered the body of a girl Monday morning after she was swept downstream while swimming in a river in Pope County.

The Pope County sheriff’s office said it responded around 8:45 p.m. Sunday to Illinois Bayou along Arkansas 164 after reports of a girl being swept downstream.

Rescue crews searched the waters through the early hours of Monday morning, and divers found the girl’s body in the water shortly after 10 a.m., officials said.

Pope County Coroner Danny White said the girl was 10 years old. His office is investigating the death.

A statement by the sheriff’s office didn’t say why the girl was in the water after sunset.