SC girl swept away in flood found dead, baby brother still missing
Police in Pennsylvania announced Sunday that the body of a 2-year-old girl from Charleston has been recovered, days after she was swept away by flood waters that also claimed her mother and baby brother.
Upper Makefield Township police announced in a Facebook post that they had found the body of Matilda “Mattie” Shiels late Friday, almost a week after the young girl had last been seen. Searchers are continuing to try to find Mattie’s 9-month-old brother Conrad Shiels, who was lost in the same floodwaters.
“This past Friday, after 7 days, Mattie was brought home to her loving family,” the police said in the post. “We are devastated that we have not yet been able to reunite Conrad with his sister and family.”
The children and their mother, 32-year-old Katie Seley, were visiting the area along with their father, grandmother and 4-year-old brother. Police say they were driving on July 15 near the Delaware River about 30 miles north of Philadelphia when seven inches of rain fell in 45 minutes.
The father, grandmother and 4-year-old were able to get to safety after their car was swamped by flood water. But Seley and the two other children were swept away. The mother’s body was found by searchers the next day.
In all, six dead have been identified in the flooding that swept Bucks County, Pennsylvania, because of the rainfall, police said. The search for Conrad will continue.
“We have no words to describe how we are feeling except truly heartbroken,” police said in Friday’s post. “But, the pain we feel is nowhere near what these families have been through. They will forever be in our hearts and never will be forgotten. And to Conrad, we will never stop until we can bring you home. We love you and as do so many people who have been following this tragic event.
“If love was enough to bring you home, we would have found you a long time ago.”
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