Search continues for missing man swept away in floodwaters

MARICOPA COUNTY, Ariz. - The search is on for a man Sunday evening who was swept away by flood water north of the Valley. And while three people are safe tonight, that man is still missing.

What we know:

Search efforts led to the rescue of two more people in a separate vehicle. Near Table Mesa, on and off rain did not make it easy for search and rescue efforts on Nov. 23. 

A man and woman were in a Jeep that was carried away. She was rescued, but he hasn't been seen since. That man was identified by officials with the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office as Christopher Couch on Nov. 24.

The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office said crews broke from that first search for another rescue operation involving two people stuck on the side of moving water, just a few miles away.

The backstory:

Witness video captured the moments from the earlier rescue, as the woman was pulled from the water and brought to safety.

"It was foggy and there was a cool chance for some awesome pictures," said Sims, who was stranded by flash floods. "He’s got somebody and he’s alive. He’s got a lady and she’s alive."

A water rescue near Table Mesa.

"The rescue chopper got one woman off the bank, which is a miracle really," Sims said.

But a man inside their Jeep wasn’t so lucky, swept away by the flooding Agua Fria River.

"There’s dozens of cars across the way. They’ve been walking up and down the bank. This river goes all the way out to Lake Pleasant so he could be anywhere," Sims said.

Sims, himself, came face to face with the rising water.

"I crossed the Agua Fria River. And it was a little rowdy but not too bad. But pretty much as soon as I crossed it, the river rose three or four feet. And it was definitely not crossable at that point," he said. "I knew I was stuck here for at least tonight."

Local perspective:

Rapidly rising water is a familiar sight to those in the area.

"When it starts to rain and it’s coming down pretty extensively, which it has been the past couple of days, the washes around here can get knee-deep in no time," said one area resident.

"Really quickly you can have a massive flash flood and not even realize it. So yeah. It’s really, really dangerous if you’re not aware," said another.

What they're saying:

While he was waiting, he spotted the rescue helicopter and watched the woman be flown to safety, and has been keeping an eye on rescue efforts for the missing man.

"Looking at how fast it’s going, I didn’t think they were going to get anybody out of there, but they did," Sims said. "The rescue chopper got one woman off the bank, which is a miracle really. But unfortunately, you can see the river is a little crazy right now."

While a search was underway for the missing man, sheriff’s deputies spotted two more people nearby, swept away by the water. Both were also lifted to safety.

What's next:

The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office says because of the weather and hazardous conditions, the search for the missing man has paused overnight. But they will continue the search on Monday.