The Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office (YCSO) is engaged in a search operation for a missing elderly man after his vehicle entered flash flood waters on Big Bug Creek in Cordes Lakes yesterday afternoon.
At approximately 3:00 p.m. on November 18th, residents near the E. Fremont Drive and Thunderbird Trail crossing called 9-1-1 to report a vehicle being swept away in raging floodwaters. YCSO Deputies immediately responded and located a small sedan being carried away with two adult males on or near the trunk.
The situation became critical as the vehicle began to turn over in the strong current. A YCSO deputy who had just arrived on scene took swift action, stepping into the surging water and successfully pulling one male subject to safety. The rescued man reported he had attempted to assist the driver after the vehicle drove into the flowing waters and was being swept away. The driver, described as an elderly male, was last seen as the car was carried further down the creek.
The vehicle continued downstream, eventually lodging against a tree approximately two miles from the point of entry. Swift Water Rescue teams from YCSO Search and Rescue and partner agencies searched for the vehicle but found no occupants.
Deputies were able to identify the vehicle’s owner, a 70-year-old Cordes Lakes resident. A family member confirmed that the individual left his residence around 3:00 p.m. and never reached his destination.
Yavapai Search and Rescue (SAR) units, along with Fire and rescue teams, have searched both banks of Big Bug Creek from the vehicle’s entry point to where it came to rest and beyond. SAR units are continuing search efforts along Big Bug Creek and the Agua Fria River.
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