Five people killed after flash floods tear through state on election day
Two poll workers in the US election and three other people have died after torrential rain caused flooding in Midwestern America.
The US state of Missouri was battered by eight inches of rain overnight on Monday leading to widespread flooding and dozens of water rescues.
At around 4.30am local time (10.30am GMT) on Tuesday, a man, 70, and a woman, 73, were swept away in their vehicle by swift waters at Beaver Creek, the state patrol said.
The bodies of the two people, who Wright County Clerk Loni Pedersen confirmed were poll workers, were found by crews four hours later.
Pedersen said: ‘This is a tragic loss for Wright County.
‘They were dedicated citizens who valued fair and honest elections.’
Three people in two other cars at Beaver Creek were also swept away but were able to swim to safety, police confirmed.
A few hours later, two deaths were reported in the St Louis County area of Missouri.
Firefighters were called to a scene on Tuesday morning where an SUV was spotted submerged into deep waters. Crews broke through the car’s sunroof and pulled out a woman’s body, Lemay Fire Protection District spokesperson Jason Brice said.
Brice also confirmed that another man’s body was pulled out of the creek on Tuesday.
Fire crews were able to rescue 10 people from flooded vehicles in the area.
The storms in Missouri came just a day after neighbouring states Arkansas and Oklahoma were hit with four tornados on Monday – although there were no reports of any deaths.
11 people were reportedly injured in the severe weather, with Keli Cain, spokesperson for the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management, saying assessments were underway.
Cain added that polling stations would not be affected by Monday’s storms.
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