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2 Children Dead, 1 Missing After Truck Swept Away By Flooded Creek in Arizona

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Authorities said the truck attempted to cross a flooded creek in Tonto National Forest despite barricades and signs.

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Deanna Dent/Reuters

Two children were found dead Saturday and a third is missing one day after a truck they were riding in was swept away by the raging waters of a flooded Arizona creek, authorities said. The first child, a 5-year-old boy, was found at about 8:45 a.m., according to Gila County Sheriff's Office. The Arizona Republic reports that a second child, a girl whose age was not disclosed, was found at 11:14 a.m. Gila County Sheriff’s Lt. Virgil Dodd said the boy’s body was found about three miles downstream from where the truck attempted to cross in the Tonto National Forest, despite barricades and warning signs saying not to do so. “It’s very dangerous. It’s very hazardous,” Dodd said. “In this case, this horrible and tragic incident... that’s what happens when you ignore these types of signs.” The sheriff’s office said emergency personnel and law enforcement helicopters on Friday rescued two adults and two additional children who were also in the military-style truck that was swept downstream in Tonto Creek.

Read it at Arizona Republic