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 A wall of water from a flash flood crashed over a section of I-35 during torrential rains late Saturday, sweeping seven cars off the road and killing four children of a Liberty, Mo., family. Authorities searched by foot, boat and helicopter Sunday without success for the children's missing mother and the driver of another vehicle, a Fort Worth man who was traveling alone. Occupants of the remaining vehicles were found safe. According to authorities, water from Jacob Creek, 11 miles south of Emporia, rose to a height of about six feet during an intense downpour. About 9 p.m., a wave from the creek washed onto the road from the south and swept at least three northbound vehicles over the cement median barricades into the creek bed on the other side. The seven vehicles were scattered along the creek bed as far as a mile and a half from the turnpike. The wall of water struck with such force that it pushed the cement median dividers, which weigh 10,000 to 12,000 pounds each, across the highway and buckled part of the pavement for about 100 yards. "People here on the turnpike for 30 years, they've never seen anything like this," said Mark Conboy, a captain with the Kansas Highway Patrol. Killed in the flood were Makenah Rogers, Zachary Rogers, Nicholas Rogers, and Alenah Rogers. They were the children of Robert and Melissa Rogers of Liberty. Makenah was 8 years old. Zachary was about 5, Nicholas was about 3 and Alenah about 2. Alenah had been adopted from China a few months ago, according to a friend of the family. Melissa Rogers was missing, but Robert Rogers survived, authorities said. Their silver minivan was found upside down in the creek more than a mile from the turnpike. "They were fun and outgoing and very smart little kids," said Cynthia Jerls, minister of music at the family's church, Northland Abundant Life Worship Center in Kansas City, Mo. "They were just good kids. Very well-mannered. They were all just very kind." Authorities on Sunday continued to search for Melissa Rogers and Al Larsen, 31, of Fort Worth. Larsen had been driving to Iowa. Larsen's wife, Elizabeth-Anne, said she received a frantic phone call from her husband as his car was sinking, and she hasn't heard from him since. Authorities found his vehicle, a Jeep Grand Cherokee, upside down in the creek near the Rogers' minivan, which also had been flipped upside down. Marc McCune, a master trooper with the Kansas Highway Patrol, said he was directing traffic near the scene of another accident about seven miles south of Jacob Creek at 8:51 p.m. When he reached the flooded area at 9:01 p.m., he saw a wall of water sweep the Rogers' minivan and two other northbound cars over the barricades. Moments later, Robert Rogers walked out of the water and told McCune, "My family's missing." Rogers had broken out the driver-side window of the minivan to try to get to his children and pull them out, McCune said. But as soon as the window broke, the force of the water pulled him from the van and swept the vehicle with his family still inside further downstream. Rogers wasn't hurt, but he was in shock, McCune said. Rogers was transported to Newman Regional Health, a hospital in Emporia, where he was treated and released. Mike Johnston, 27, of Hurst, Texas, was in another of the vehicles swept into the creek. Johnston, who works for a fabric company, was on his way to Nebraska City, Neb., for a meeting when he drove into the flooded area. Water spilled into his car. "It was basically a river running through my car," he said. Johnston crawled out a window and walked to safety. "I'm blessed to be alive," he said. The water came up so quickly that there wasn't time to close the turnpike before the accidents, said Lisa Callahan, director of public relations for the Kansas Turnpike Authority. "It was just a sudden thing," she said. And it had never happened before, she said. "We have not had water this extensive on the turnpike," she said. "I don't know that there's ever been water on the road at this location, and certainly not this extensive." No flood warning was issued prior to the accident, according to the National Weather Service. The service had issued a flood watch for central Kansas, including Chase County, at 10:45 a.m. Saturday, and it was in effect all day. A rain gauge in Plymouth, about 10 miles north of the flood scene, showed that 7.1 inches had fallen in a 24-hour period as of 7 a.m. Sunday, the weather service said. "Given the amount of rain that fell the last couple of days, it's certainly possible that the creek just got up out of its banks," said Chad Omitt, a meteorologist for the service. When the Highway Patrol reached the scene, traffic had backed up two miles in both directions. Southbound traffic was diverted off the highway in Emporia, while northbound traffic was taken off at Cassoday, about 30 miles south of Emporia. The turnpike was re-opened by 11 p.m. but was restricted to one lane between Cassoday and Emporia until Sunday. The search for the missing people was hampered late Saturday by darkness, rain and high water, said John Thomas, shift commander for the Emporia Fire Department. On Sunday, crews walked the length of the flood scene. They used four-wheel-drive vehicles, a boat and a helicopter equipped with infrared sensors to look for victims. Searchers found auto parts strewn as far as a mile from the scene. Seven dogs and seven volunteer rescue workers from the Kansas Search and Rescue Dog Association in Wichita also were on the scene. They joined crews from the Emporia Fire Department, the Highway Patrol, the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks, the Salvation Army and the Chase County Fire Department in the search. Before they ran out of daylight, the dogs showed interest in an area of the creek where it runs into a small lake, said Sandi Stelz, who owns one of the dogs. The search was called off for the day about 7 p.m. Rescue workers planned to bring more dogs and people to the scene at daybreak today, authorities said. Lifesaving Resources Inc. - www.lifesaving.com - 603/563-8330 |
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