Two girls died and one girl was hospitalized in critical condition after an off-road accident in the Lower Eagle Creek, according to the Greenlee County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies responded to a rollover side-by-side accident involving a family around 5:30 p.m. April 18. Upon arrival, deputies discovered a completely submerged side-by-side, a type of off-road vehicle.
Sheriff Eric Ellison said it was tough to pinpoint the exact location of the crash because of the rugged and winding terrain and lack of service. He was the first from the Sheriff’s Office to locate the family.
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“It was heartbreaking for everybody there,” Ellison said.
The crash occurred on a strip of the creek that measured 3 feet deep where the family was crossing, Ellison said. Each side dips to about 8 feet.
The parents, who were in the front seats, told Ellison that they got off the 3-foot-deep path, and the side-by-side rolled over into the deep portion.
Two girls, ages 4 and 10, drowned in the crash. One girl was trapped inside the vehicle as it sank, and the other was rescued but could not be revived.
A third girl, 3, was taken to a Tucson hospital in critical condition. She was still in the intensive care unit, as of April 21.
“Our condolence’s go to the family in this tragic event,” a
Facebook post
from Sheriff Ellison read.
A
GoFundMe
identified the three girls as sisters Gia, Mia and Xia Miranda. Xia was hospitalized.
Video from the Sheriff’s Office showed that officers with the Arizona Department of Public Safety used a helicopter to reach the scene of the accident, as well as off-road vehicles. Other responding agencies included Morenci Fire; Morenci Swift Water Rescue; Greenlee County Search and Rescue; and Greenlee EMS.
The community also aided the rescue. Ellison said the location of the crash was only accessible with a side-by-side, not any off-road vehicle. Passersby lent authorities their side-by-sides or drove authorities to the location.
“The community was outstanding by helping us get in, otherwise…we wouldn’t have even gotten there to help them,” Ellison said.
Lower Eagle Creek is near Morenci, Arizona, about two and a half hours from Deming, New Mexico, where the family is from.
According to
Greenlee Arizona Tourism
, Eagle Creek is one of the largest creeks in Arizona. The creek ranges in depth from one to 10 feet, according to Ellison.
Ellison said creeks in Greenlee County have become popular spots for off-roading.
(This story has been updated to add a video.)
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic:
‘It was heartbreaking for everybody’: 2 girls die in rollover crash in southeastern AZ
