Two children have been found dead and a third is missing after being swept up by floodwaters in central Arizona, CNN reports.

The children disappeared on Friday afternoon when a vehicle they were in was caught by a flooding creek in Tonto Basin, Arizona. The incident occurred about 60 miles west of the Arizona-New Mexico border, according to the Gila County Sheriff’s Office.

The vehicle contained two adults and seven children in total, KPHO-TV reports. Four children and an adult exited the vehicle successfully and found safety on an island within the creek, where they were later rescued by helicopter. A woman in the vehicle also managed to escape to the bank of the creek.

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Three of the children disappeared.

Around 8:40 a.m. Saturday, crews found the body of one of the children; the second child was found at 11:15 a.m. Saturday. One was a boy, the other was a girl, and they were both 5 years old, according to KPHO-TV. The bodies were located about 3 miles from the scene of the crash. The boy was the son of the adults in the vehicle and the girl is believed to be a niece, authorities say.

The Gila County Sheriff’s Office had closed the stretch of roadway where the flood overtook the vehicle several hours earlier, according to the television station.

Local authorities, fire departments, and a state police helicopter have all been involved in the search for the missing children, which is ongoing. The missing child is believed to be a 6-year-old daughter of the adults who were in the vehicle.

The National Weather Service in Phoenix issued a flood warning for Gila County on Friday.

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[Feature Photo: Pixabay]