A man died and two other people were missing Tuesday afternoon after a group of people was swept away in an Ontario storm drain during heavy rainfall.
The incident was reported around 9:50 a.m. on East 4th Street near John Galvin Park, according to the Ontario Fire Department.
A total of six people described as being homeless were swept downstream about 2 miles and into a catch basin. Three were pulled from the water alive, two others were unaccounted for and a sixth person did not survive, officials said.
The rescued people were taken to a hospital and are expected to be OK.
Dan Bell, a spokesman for the city of Ontario said divers were searching for the missing people.
“They’re scouring the entire the basin trying to locate those bodies. We’re not sure they’re here, but we need to do our due diligence and find those folks,” Bell said. “They were living in an area that’s not safe when you have high flood waters like this.”
Video from the scene showed the fast-moving current.
The wash swelled as a powerful storm hit Southern California, causing issues in several areas.
Heavy rain sent mud flowing through the Oak Glen community of San Bernardino County.
In the Cypress Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, two vehicles were swept away in the rain-swollen L.A. River.
Check back for updates on this developing story.