Flash flooding in Missouri leaves one person dead as 200 campers are rescued

Flooding in Lesterville, Missouri, on Friday. Photograph: KTVI/AP View image in fullscreen Flooding in Lesterville, Missouri, on Friday. Photograph: KTVI/AP Flash flooding in Missouri leaves one person dead as 200 campers are rescued Woman dies after her home is swept away as heavy rainfall batters parts of state, forcing rescues and evacuations A woman was found dead in Missouri on Saturday after heavy rainfall battered parts of the state the previous day, forcing numerous emergency rescues and evacuations, including at a summer camp with more than 200 children. The body of Faith Gregory, who went missing in Missouri’s Crawford county after her home was swept away from its foundation, was found by volunteers late Saturday morning. Her body was discovered about 1.8 miles (3km) downstream from her residence in Huzzah creek, according to the county sheriff’s office. “This is not the outcome that any of us were hoping for,” sheriff’s office said in a statement. “Our thoughts and prayers are with Faith’s family, friends, and all those affected by this tragic loss.” There was no longer anyone still unaccounted for in the county, which is about 70 miles (110km) south-west of St Louis. The National Weather Service (NWS) issued flash flood warnings for the area as thunderstorms piled on one after another. Several other states also faced the potential for severe thunderstorms and flash flooding as the slow moving storms moved southward. The NWS said the severe weather affected a wide region stretching from the Ozark Mountains in southern Missouri eastward into much of the Ohio and Tennessee river valleys. The storms could bring damaging winds, heavy rainfall and scattered flash flooding to the multistate region, with some places seeing impacts into Sunday, the NWS said. In eastern Tennessee, flooding closed some roads and downed power lines, and authorities from Kentucky to West Virginia told people to be ready to seek higher ground. Missouri’s emergency management agency warned that while the storms move south and out of the state, further thunderstorms could still bring additional flash flooding, especially in areas that have already received 6 and 12in (15 and 30cm ) of rain. “It’s very, very popular place for recreation,” Matt Beitscher, a lead meteorologist with the NWS office in St Louis, said of the affected counties. “So there are campgrounds there. There are float trip locations there. A lot of vulnerable populations that would be susceptible to flash flooding.” Friday’s drenching rains washed away roads around Camp Taum Sauk, trapping children and staff at the site in the small south-eastern community of Lesterville, according Sgt Eddie Young, with the state’s highway patrol. The Army National Guard used Black Hawk helicopters to fly them to a nearby elementary school and reunite them with their families, he said. The camp thanked emergency crews in a post on Instagram, saying, “We are beyond thankful for your help keeping our camp community saf