Deaths From Flooding Include Three From Same Family

The deceased were occupants of a truck that had reportedly been driving in high water and washed into the Tug River on Sunday.

A flooded riverbank.

In a press release Wednesday, the West Virginia State Police said that three deaths were from the same family.

The deceased were occupants of a truck that had reportedly been driving in high water and washed into the Tug River on Sunday. The truck was located a short time later in the water near Coney Island in Welch.

Two adults, Deborah and Donald Griffin, both 69 years old, had previously been identified, but a two-year-old boy was reported missing after he was seen being taken from the truck by Donald.

The boy’s body was located Tuesday in the river in the area of Hunting Shirt Bottom in Davy, WV an estimated 10 miles from the location where the truck was found.

Two female minors were able to escape from the truck after being swept down river and were rescued from the water by fire department and EMS.

The two deceased adults were legal guardians for the three children.

Author: Chris Schulz

Chris is WVPB's North Central/Morgantown Reporter and covers the education beat. Chris spent two years as the digital media editor at The Dominion Post newspaper in Morgantown. Before coming to West Virginia, he worked in immigration advocacy and education in the Washington, D.C. region. He is a graduate of the University of Maryland and received a Masters in Journalism from Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism.

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