A 7-year-old Utah girl is dead, and her younger sister remains missing, following a flash flood Monday in Little Wildhorse Canyon. After an extensive search Tuesday, authorities confirmed that the girl is the only known casualty of the flood, while the search continues for her 3-year-old sister, the Deseret News reported.

“It is with great sadness that [the sheriff’s office] confirms that the deceased victim of yesterday’s flash flood in Little Wildhorse Canyon is a 7-year-old Utah girl. The search continues today for her missing 3-year-old sister,” the Emery County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.

Little Wildhorse Canyon is part of an eight-mile-long hiking loop in Utah’s Goblin Valley State Park. On Monday, a strong thunderstorm of golf-ball-sized hail passed over the park, quickly flooding the slot canyon the girls and their parents were hiking through, dragging them up to three miles.

“It would be like putting them through a washing machine,” Emery Sheriff Greg Funk said.

The older child was found by her father and a piece of clothing belonging to the younger child was found seven miles downstream. There are 67 crew members continuing to search for her.

At least 21 other hikers known to have been using the loop during the storm have been found safe and accounted for.

“We’re actively monitoring the situation in slot canyons near Goblin Valley State Park through @UtahDPS,” Utah Gov. Gary Herbert said in a tweet on Monday. “More information will be provided as it becomes available.”

Goblin Valley State Park is located about 225 miles southeast of Salt Lake City.

missing
In this photo a teenager volunteers and hands out flyers for a missing boy. Getty Images
RELATED STORIES