ELMA — Police said Tuesday they have found the cellphone and car keys of a 39-year-old man who has been missing since he drove past a road closure sign early Sunday and his vehicle became disabled in floodwaters.
Searchers found both items belonging to Timothy Warren of Malone washed across a roadway and stuck in rocks on the road’s edge, Grays Harbor County Undersheriff Brad Johansson said.
Investigators believe the items were dropped by Warren after he exited the vehicle and tried to walk out of swiftly-moving water. The Grays Harbor Sheriff’s Office and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife continue searching for him.
Emergency workers on Saturday recovered the body of a 72-year-old man whose vehicle was swept away by flooding near Cosmopolis.
Southwest Washington was hit hard in the past week with some rivers cresting at over 18 feet (5.5 meters), the National Weather Service said. Washington Gov. Jay Inslee issued an emergency proclamation Friday.
Flood watches and warnings were in effect Tuesday as an atmospheric river brought more rain, wind, flood and landslide risk to western Washington.
Two emergency shelters in the southwest region have seen 123 shelter stays, more than 700 meals and snacks served and more than 50 clean-up kits distributed, the American Red Cross said Tuesday.
After days of heavy snow in the Cascade mountains, a miles-long stretch of U.S. 2 over Stevens Pass remained closed Tuesday because of continued avalanche danger and multiple tall slides in the roadway, state transportation officials said.
