9 People Killed In Flash Flood At Arizona Swimming Hole

03:52

Updated July 17, 2017

Members of the Tonto Rim Search and Rescue team exit a section of forest after searching along the banks of the East Verde River for victims of a flash flood, Sunday, July 16, 2017, in Payson, Ariz. Search and rescue crews, including 40 people on foot and others in a helicopter, have recovered bodies of children and adults, some as far as two miles down the river after Saturday's flash flooding poured over a popular swimming area inside the Tonto National Forest in central Arizona. (Ralph Freso/AP)

A flash flood at an Arizona swimming hole has taken the lives of at least nine people, many from an extended family.

The group had been relaxing at the Cold Springs Swimming Hole on Saturday, about 100 miles from Phoenix, when a heavy thunderstorm upstream caused raging waters full of debris to flood the area.

Here & Now's Jeremy Hobson hears more from Stina Sieg (@StinaSieg) of Here & Now contributor KJZZ.

Editor's Note: Since this story first aired, the Gila County Sheriff's Office has released an update saying that five children and four adults are dead, and that one person is still missing. We've updated the digital version above.

This article was originally published on July 17, 2017.

This segment aired on July 17, 2017.

9 People Killed In Flash Flood At Arizona Swimming Hole

Related:

More from Here & Now