The flash flooding that hit along the Utah-Arizona border earlier this week is now blamed for 20 deaths.
Twelve of those were in the small Utah border community of Hildale after a wall of water dragged swept through the town. A vehicle carrying three women and 13 children was swept away; three children survived. A 6-year-old boy remains missing.
Hildale Mayor Philip Barlow said the three women who died were sisters: Josephine Jessop, Naomi Jessop and Della Black. Josephine Jessop and Naomi Jessop were also sister wives, both married to Joseph N. Jessop. It's not uncommon in the polygamous sect for relatives to marry the same man.
The names of the children, ranging from 4 to 11 years old, were not disclosed.
People rushed to the scene when the cars finally came to a stop downstream. What they saw was gruesome; dead bodies were strewn everywhere and the vehicles that once held them were crumpled and mangled, almost beyond recognition. But somehow, they found one boy who survived the ordeal, standing nearby.
Authorities in Mohave County, Arizona, confirmed the death of 33-year-old Ryan Mertlich. His car was discovered heavily damaged in a flood plain about 15 miles west of Colorado City. Mertlich's family reported him missing Tuesday, saying he typically drives the back roads in the area. His body was found late Thursday.
http://www.wunderground.com/news/utah-flash-floods
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