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Child's Body Found in Aftermath of Texas Flooding

It is unknown if the child, found in the Blanco River in Hays County, is one of of those missing after a house was swept away in a flood.
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Authorities in Texas on Wednesday recovered the body of a child from the Blanco River, which flooded during heavy rains over the weekend and swept away a home with nine people inside, authorities said

The age and identity of the boy found in Hays County has not been determined, and it was unknown whether he is one of eight people identified as missing in the aftermath of the flooding, the city of San Marcos said in a statement.

Heavy rainstorms sent what officials described as a "wall of water" roaring down the Blanco River in Wimberley late Saturday and early Sunday, sweeping an A-frame house off its stilts and sending it into the river, where it struck a bridge a broke apart.

Only one of the six adults and three children inside, father of two Jonathan McComb, has been found alive. McComb’s two children, 4 and 6, and the child of another family in the home are missing.

Earlier Wednesday, authorities identified a body found near the river Tuesday as 43-year-old Michelle Carey-Charba, who was inside the house along with her husband, son, and parents when the structure was swept into the river.

Still missing from inside the home are McComb’s wife, Laura; their two children, Andrew, 6, and Leighton, 4; Carey-Charba's husband, Randy Charba; their young son, Will; and Carey-Charba’s parents, Ralph and Sue Carey.

Before Wednesday’s discovery, searchers had found two other bodies near the Blanco River after the flooding. They were identified Wednesday as Alvaro Arteaga-Pichardo, 29, and Dayton Larry Thomas, 74.

At least 14 people have died after rains soaked central and southeastern Texas, including Houston.

In Oklahoma, the deaths of six people have been attributed to flooding in that state since Friday. A woman also died after a tornado touched down in Bryan County Monday, the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management said.

On Wednesday, Google announced it would donate $300,000 for flood recovery efforts in the hardest-hit counties in both states.

— Phil Helsel