Five members of a Utah family died in a flash flood over the weekend after going out for a day of hiking in the southern part of the U.S. state, according to law enforcement officials. Among the victims were fire captain Spencer Long, his wife and three children. A daughter who did not participate in
Five members of a Utah family died in a flash flood over the weekend after going out for a day of hiking in the southern part of the U.S. state, according to law enforcement officials.
Among the victims were fire captain Spencer Long, his wife and three children. A daughter who did not participate in the excursion is the only family member who has not died.
“The family is believed to have been a victim of flooding caused by heavy rain,” the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement, which did not name the people who died.
Instead, the family’s identification came from Provo Fire & Rescue, which announced Capt. Spencer Long’s death in a statement of its own.
“We are absolutely heartbroken by the death of Captain Spencer Long and his family,” the fire department said. “Our thoughts are with his family, friends and colleagues during this difficult time.”
A GoFundMe page appears to connect the sheriff’s statement to the fire department and says Long, his wife Katrina and their three children, Reid, Thayne and Gage, died in a flash flood incident.
The fundraising effort also says the couple had a daughter whose “life changed forever in an instant.”
The family arrived at a campground near Bicknell, Utah, for a day trip on Friday, the sheriff’s office said in its statement.
Authorities were called to that camp around 5:00 p.m. local time (23:00 GMT) on Friday, where a young victim was found dead.
During the search, two other male victims were found dead, the statement added.
The search resumed Saturday for the two remaining individuals, who the sheriff’s office later confirmed were found dead.
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