Woman found dead after being swept away in floodwaters near Holbrook

HOLBROOK, AZ (3TV/CBS 5) -- Deputies found on Thursday the body of a woman whose Jeep was swept away in fast-moving floodwaters in northern Arizona. Just before 11 a.m., the Navajo County Sheriff’s Office received a call from a man, saying his 64-year-old wife was missing after the two were crossing a wash known as Seymour’s Crossing outside Holbrook, west of state Route 377. The husband said the floodwaters pushed their Jeep off the dirt road the night before and sent them downstream until it eventually stopped.

After an hour, officials say the husband and wife crawled out of the Jeep and got to the riverbank but got separated in the dark. The husband was eventually found by residents and taken to safety. He then called 911 to say his wife was missing. Rescue teams from multiple agenies took to the air and the ground to look for her. However, the woman was found dead half a mile downstream from the Jeep.

Also on Thursday, rescue crews discovered the bodies of a couple who crossed a wash and got swept away near Payson. The couple, 72-year-old Dara Sutton and 85-year-old Phon Sutton, went missing on Tuesday afternoon in the Bear Flat community. Officials say the couple was trying to get home after taking their dog from a vet appointment when their truck was swept by the current. The Suttons were found 100 yards from their pickup truck in the creek.