Baby and Toddler Missing After Mother Died in Pennsylvania Flash Flooding

Two siblings, a 9-month-old boy and 2-year-old girl, are still missing after flash flooding raged through a southeastern Pennsylvania road, killing their mother and four others, local police confirmed to Newsweek.

"We have 5 who tragically died and 2 children, a boy 9 months of age and his sister, 2 years age, still missing," Upper Makefield Township Police Department told Newsweek in a Facebook message on Sunday.

A powerful storm caused torrential rainfall on Saturday evening, and within two hours parts of Bucks County was slammed with 4.64 inches of rain, according to the National Weather Service (NWS). While multiple parts of the county were hit with flooding, especially near the Delaware River, a stretch of Pennsylvania Route 532 was inundated. The sudden flash flooding led to numerous road closures and several vehicles being swept away in Upper Makefield Township, which is roughly 35 miles from Philadelphia.

Multiple law enforcement agencies, including Upper Makefield Township police, launched a search and rescue operation for seven people lost in the floodwater late Saturday night along Route 532 near Taylorsville and Washington Crossing roads, Upper Makefield police said. After the mother's body was recovered on Sunday, the department confirmed to Newsweek shortly after 6:40 p.m. that only the two children remained missing.

The identities of the victims and missing children are not being released at this time, police said.

"With these 5 deaths, this is a mass casualty incident the likes of which we have not seen before," Upper Makefield Township Police Department said. "This has been unbelievably devastating to all the families involved, all of our first responders, and to our community as a whole. We are all in grieving over the loss of life we have seen. However, our commitment to finding the two children who are still missing is unwavering as we will do all that we can to bring them home to their loved ones."

Houghs Creek rose more than five feet on Saturday, causing "violent and fast-moving" water to flood the road, Upper Makefield Fire Chief Tim Brewer said during a Sunday afternoon press conference. The chief said the flash flooding caught many travelers by surprise, forcing people to be trapped inside their vehicles.

Eleven vehicles were found in the water, including three that were swept away, Brewer said, adding that one of the vehicles was found more than 1.5 miles from where it went into the creek.

While sharing an update about the deadly flooding Sunday on Facebook, the Upper Makefield Police Department included a video to "show the magnitude of the flash flood." In the clip, swift water rages over part of Route 532 near Meadowview Drive, with the department saying it wasn't even the "worst section"
of flooding.

"As of right now, Rt. 532 between Meadowview and Wrightstown Road is closed as is Taylorsville Road south of Rt. 532," Upper Makefield police said. "We will try and keep you updated, but please be patient as we are working to find these two beautiful children."

The baby boy and little girl, who are from Charleston, South Carolina, and in Pennsylvania to visit family and friends, were traveling to a barbeque with their dad, mom, 4-year-old brother and grandmother as their vehicles were caught in the flash flood on state Route 532, the department said. The infant, toddler, their mother and grandmother were swept away by the flood water.

The father, brother and grandmother all "miraculously" survived the flash flood, police said.

"Unbelievably, the grandmother survived and was treated at a local hospital," the department said in the online statement. "However, the lovely mother of these two beautiful children was one of the people we found deceased during yesterday's search efforts. So, it is their two children we are looking to bring home."

The department said "out of respect for their privacy" the names of the children and their family members will not be released at this time but said the family is "overwhelmed" by the outpouring of support and kindness amid this tragedy.

"We cannot even begin to imagine what this family is going through, but they know we are here to help them through this process and to bring their beautiful children home," Upper Makefield police said.

Search efforts for the children will continue Sunday night, the department said.

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro pledged state support for Bucks County, saying on his official Twitter account: "Bucks County, we have your back."

"We will be here as long as it takes to make sure you all are back on your feet," the governor said in a subsequent tweet.

Update, 7/17/23, 6:45 a.m. ET: The headline on this article was updated.