A 4-year-old boy was swept away by floodwaters while playing in Indiana

DELPHI, Ind. – Rescuers are expected to restart their search Saturday morning for a 4-year-old boy who was swept away in a flooded Indiana creek after heavy rains hit the region, authorities said.

Catastrophic storms tore through the central US this week, unleashing flooding and tornadoes, and devastating parts of the region.

Owen Jones was playing Thursday with his friends near Deer Creek in Delphi when the incident happened.

A group of kids — between ages 12 and 16 — who were with Owen called 911 and tried to follow him but lost sight of him. Heavy rains added to the already-strong current that carried Owen downstream, said Lt. Dan Dulin of the Indiana Department of Natural Resources.

Recent rains have made the current so strong that divers couldn’t search for boy, Dulin said. Rescuers used boats with sonar and drones instead, he said.

Storms in the Midwest and Great Plains have left eight people dead this week. One person has died in Iowa, five in Missouri and two in Oklahoma.

Delphi is about 75 miles from Indianapolis.