Thursday, November 7, 2024 - An elderly couple in Missouri died on their way to work together on Election Day.
The Missouri State Highway Patrol responded to reports of three vehicles being
carried off the roadway on State Route H near Beaver Creek in Wright County at
approximately 4:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 5.
According to the highway patrol's press release, the organization
deployed its marine officers to the scene and received assistance from agents
from the Missouri Department of Conservation and the Wight County Sheriff's
Office to begin rescue operations.
Three individuals from two vehicles escaped the floodwaters by swimming
to shore. Riding in the third vehicle was the elderly couple, a 70-year-old man
and a 73-year-old woman from Manes, Miss., who were found deceased at
approximately 8:45 a.m.
In a separate statement, the Wright County Sheriff's Office said
the pair were "recovered quickly" from the area using the Wright
County drone piloted by one of its sheriffs.
The sheriff's department added that the area experienced "extreme
flooding in low-water areas and bridges" throughout the "evening
hours of November 4th and early morning hours of November 5th."
"There were several vehicle slide offs due to hydroplaning and
simply because places flooded that generally don't flood! Wright County had six
swift water incidents that resulted in two fatalities," the statement
added.
In a statement obtained by local news
outlets KOLR and KYTV, Wright County Clerk Loni Pedersen said
that the elderly couple's names would not be released "out of respect and
privacy to the family."
"As reported by the Wright County Sheriff this loss of life
occurred as a result of swift, high water from the storms that came through the
area the night before. This is a tragic loss for Wright County," the
statement continued.
Pedersen remembered the couple as "dedicated citizens who valued
fair and honest elections" and "will be missed."
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