At Least 4 Dead in Arizona Flash Flooding

Four people died after heavy rain caused flooding in Arizona, including three in a rural 19th-century mining town where floodwaters on Friday forced people to seek safety on rooftops and washed out a propane distributorship, scattering about 1,000 tanks downtown.

About 2.5 inches (6.4 centimeters) of rain fell in Globe, a city of about 7,250 people about 88 miles (142 kilometers) east of Phoenix, over 24 hours and another storm moved in Saturday, temporarily halting the search for people possibly missing in the flood because of high-flowing creeks.

Streets flooded in the nearby mining town of Miami on Saturday, but no injuries were reported, Carl Melford, emergency manager in Gila County, said. Meanwhile, about 20 tourists stranded in parts of the Havasupai Indian Reservation, including at scenic Havasu Falls, because of flooding were evacuated, Bureau of Indian Affairs dispatcher Shaileen Gonzales said.

In Globe, the bodies of two people were earlier found in a vehicle and another person was found in the floodwaters in Globe, Melford said, They were not immediately identified by authorities.

Another person was found dead Saturday morning near a vehicle caught in floodwaters in suburban Phoenix the night before. The vehicle appeared to be empty after it was spotted partially submerged in about 8 feet (2.4 meters) of fast-moving water on Friday evening in a greenbelt park area, the Scottsdale Fire Department said. After the water dropped a bit overnight, crews found the body of a person pinned underneath a walkway bridge, the department said.

In the rural community of Globe, one of Arizona’s oldest mining towns, sheriffs’ officials were looking into reports of people who may be missing, Melford said, but could not specify a number.