Poll workers die in Missouri flash floods on Election Day

In a photo released by the Missouri State Highway Patrol, a tractor-trailer sits submerged in floodwater on U.S. 63 just north of Cabool on Tuesday. Missouri State Highway Patrol via AP

Two poll workers in their 70s died Tuesday after torrential rains caused flash flooding in Missouri.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol reported the deaths of a 70-year-old man and a 73-year-old woman after two vehicles were swept off State Route H near Beaver Creek in Wright County.

Troopers said they received a call around 4:30 a.m. for three vehicles carried off the road by floodwaters.

“Emergency response teams, including marine officers from the Missouri State Highway Patrol and agents from the Missouri Department of Conservation, initiated rescue operations,” a release stated.

Three people from two of the vehicles were able to escape by swimming to shore, but troopers added that the two residents from Manes were found dead around 8:45 a.m.

Wright County Clerk Loni Pedersen confirmed that both people who died were poll workers.

“This is a tragic loss for Wright County,” Pedersen said in an email to The Associated Press. “They were dedicated citizens who valued fair and honest elections.”

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