Aberdeen man missing after driving through flooded road
ELMA, Wash. - The Grays Harbor Sheriff’s Office is looking for a missing man last believed to be driving through floodwaters in Elma.
Authorities were called at 3:19 a.m. Sunday morning by a man saying his friend was missing.
The man said his friend called him earlier that morning, saying he tried to drive his truck past a road closure on Porter Creek Road West in Elma, but it got disabled by the floodwaters. He asked the man if he could help tow his truck out to safety, and the man agreed.
He arrived at the truck around 2:30 a.m., but his friend was not in the truck. The man told deputies the floodwaters were swift, and nearly swept him away just walking to his friend’s truck and back.
Deputies arrived at the truck at 3:36 a.m., but given the darkness and dangerous conditions were unable to launch a boat to look for the missing man. The sheriff’s office called in the Thurston County Swift Water Rescue Team, who likewise determined they could not search in these conditions until daylight.
The Pacific County Sheriff’s Office was also contacted, who deployed their thermal-imaging drone, but it could not locate the man.
Authorities are still on scene and have begun their search as of Sunday morning. It is not yet known if the missing man was able to get transportation out of the area or was swept away.
The sheriff’s office urges drivers to avoid driving past road closure signs, especially in dangerous conditions.
RELATED: Flood waters starting to recede in Chehalis
READ MORE: King County declares emergency over flooding, ongoing snowstorm problems
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