Nine storm-related deaths were reported across the United States this week as a slow-moving storm pounded an area from southern Texas to the Ohio River Valley.
Eight of those deaths were caused by flooding.
In Missouri, the bodies of Scott M. Puckett and Alex Ekern were recovered after their kayak overturned in spring flooding near the town of Walnut Shade, in the southern part of the state. Missouri State Patrol Sgt. Jason Pace said the two went missing Wednesday night in Bull Creek. A third kayaker escaped and called for help.
Puckett's body was recovered Friday morning, Ekern's on Thursday.
About 30 miles away, also in Missouri, floodwaters swept away a camper near Ava. According to the Douglas County Sheriff's Facebook page, the camper refused to leave his campsite near Hunter Creek on Wednesday and when deputies returned they couldn't find him. After the water receded, the body of Robbie Turner, 59, of Norwood was found downstream from the campsite. He apparently drowned, the sheriff's office said.
In Oklahoma, a 55-year-old Tulsa man and a 58-year-old Stephens County man died in flooding incidents, said Keli Cain with Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management.
In Texas, a 55-year-old man was found dead after he was swept away by flood waters, Hays County Sheriff Gary Cutler said Saturday. Michael Hurlbut was caught in flood waters on Friday in Dripping Springs, Cutler said.
Also in Texas, Martha Patricia Torres-Regalado, 44, was found dead Thursday morning. She drove into floodwaters around 10;45 p.m. Wednesday, stepped out of her vehicle and was swept away by a flash flood, Sulfur Springs Police Lt. Pat Leber said.
In Indiana, a 2-year-old boy died Thursday after his mother apparently did not see a high-water sign and drove into a road covered by floodwaters, the Indiana State Police reported. The mother escaped from the submerged car but failed in her attempts to rescue the boy, identified as Eric Long, state police said.
In southern Oklahoma, a tornado killed a woman near Bokchito, said Keli Cain of Oklahoma Emergency Management. Details were not immediately available.
