At least 5 killed during flash flooding in Philadelphia suburbs
Recovery operations continued for two children in Bucks County on Sunday, one day after drenching thunderstorms moved through the region and produced severe flash flooding.
Four people were killed and four are missing, after a massive flash flood event Saturday evening in Bucks County, due to torrential rain fall, authorities in Bucks County confirm.
At least five people died Saturday when they were swept away by torrential floodwaters in Bucks County in suburban Philadelphia, where emergency crews continued searching for two others who remained missing on Sunday, according to authorities.
The bodies of two women and one man were found Saturday night in the area of Washington Crossing, part of Upper Makefield Township in Bucks County, about 30 minutes north of Center City Philadelphia.
On Sunday afternoon, the Upper Makefield Township Police Department confirmed that a fourth body was found by search teams, but the identity of the person was being withheld until the victim's identity was confirmed and relatives were notified. Later on Sunday, the department confirmed the body of the other adult female was recovered as well. Police said that they continue to search for a 9-month-old boy and his two-year-old sister.
Saturday night's deadly flash flooding brought torrential rains to parts of Bucks County outside Philadelphia. (Upper Makefield Police Department)
”We are treating this as a rescue, but we are fairly certain we are in a recovery mode at this time,” Upper Makefield Fire Chief Tim Brewer said during a Sunday morning press conference prior to the recovery of the fourth body.
"We truly appreciate the outpouring of support and concern for the families of this tragedy, our emergency personnel, and our community as a whole. We cannot fathom the grief these families are experiencing and we will do everything we can to assist them during this extremely difficult time," the Upper Makefield Township Police Department said in a Facebook post.
Bucks County Coroner Meredith Buck said two of the victims were found together in one location while the third person was found in a separate area -- all outside of their vehicles. Their identities have not been released.
"It's very possible it could be more" fatalities, the coroner told the Bucks County Courier Times.
Officials said about 6 to 7 inches of rain fell in a two-hour period across Bucks County Saturday evening.
"Our area was hit with a torrential rainstorm" that caused flash flooding in several areas throughout the township, Upper Makefield Township police said Sunday morning, "the worse of which occurred along Route 532 in the area of Stonebridge Crossing Road between Aqueduct Road and Wrightstown Road. The flash flooding caught numerous motorists by surprise and many were trapped."
Fire officials said flooded roads trapped nearly a dozen vehicles along Washington Crossing Road, with eight people rescued from cars and two from Houghs Creek. Those trapped included the three victims who were swept away in the rushing floodwaters, the Inquirer reported.
The police department offered their condolences for the deceased, saying "Our thoughts and prayers are with their families and friends as they go through unimaginable grief."
The Lower Makefield Township Police Department said some major roadways in the area were impassable due to the storms. "Police are assessing damage and conditions of other roadways. Do not drive through standing water and do not go around police barricades."
A flash flood warning, as well as a severe thunderstorm warning, had been issued for parts of the lower Bucks County area by the National Weather Service on Saturday evening.
Washington Crossing is home to Washington Crossing Historic Park, a site that preserves the location of where George Washington crossed the Delaware River in December 1776.
Moisture-packed showers and storms will continue to target the Northeast, raising flood concerns into next week.
The flooding in southeastern Pennsylvania on Saturday comes days after torrential downpours and slow-moving thunderstorms produced historic and deadly flooding in other parts of the Northeast, including New York state and Vermont. However, the flooding was caused by a more localized event on Saturday.
"This flooding occurred due to a process known as 'training', with multiple storms moving through a narrow region repeatedly. While most of southeastern Pennsylvania received under an inch of rain on Saturday, a small portion of Bucks County received 3 to 5 inches," AccuWeather Meteorologist Andrew Johnson-Levine explained, noting that most of the rain fell over the span of an hour or two.
AccuWeather meteorologists say an atmospheric river could produce more life-threatening rainfall in parts of the Northeast into early this week.
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