Flash floods kill 16 in Arkansas

FLASH FLOODS swept through campsites in an Arkansas national forest yesterday, killing at least 16 people, police said, as a massive rescue operation was launched in the rugged mountainous area.

Helicopters scoured campgrounds along the Caddo and Little Missouri Rivers in search of survivors after rivers rose by six meters overnight following heavy rain. Earlier information indicating 12 people were killed was later updated to 16 dead, according to state police spokesman Bill Sadler, who was unable to provide details on the fatalities. “The primary mission is to get the living out of there that have been trapped,” he said earlier.

Officials brought a refrigerated truck to the forest to act as a temporary morgue.