12-year-old boy in Upper Peninsula dies after flooding collapsed basement
Photo from GoFundMe
(WJBK) - A 12-year-old boy has died from flood-based injuries in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.
Disaster declarations were issued Monday in Houghton County after flash-flooding washed out roads, damaged businesses and caused dozens of sinkholes.
One family affected was the Markhams, whose basement collapsed due to a flood-induced mudslide. Twelve-year-old Thatcher Markham was trapped inside.
The father was able to dig out the child and perform CPR, local television station WLUC reported. The child was rushed to the hospital where he reportedly passed away later Monday evening.
A GoFundMe for the family has raised more than $60,000 in just one day. If you'd like to donate, you can do so here.
In parts of the Upper Peninsula, where up to 7 inches of rain was reported, swollen waterways washed away roads, leaving behind large chunks of concrete and asphalt, making some streets impassible.
"The majority of us can't even get home. Roads are collapsed. Bridges are collapsed. Roads are covered in water. Whatever roads aren't collapsed it depends on how heavy of a vehicle you drive whether or not you are able to drive on those roads," Tom Cowell, who lives in Chassell, a community on a peninsula in Lake Superior, told WLUC.
"This is a pretty wild experience that we are having here," he said.
In nearby Houghton, a swollen creek washed away much of a parking lot and a Taco Bell sign. The land up to the restaurant's building caved into an adjacent ravine. Water rushed down a hilly street through businesses, including a comic book store and sporting goods shop where employees were trying to salvage goods.
Some residents used boats to get around, though the U.S. Coast Guard warned people to stay out of recreational waterways because of the amount of storm debris. The agency also warned that the water is still very cold and could be deadly.
Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder's office issued disaster declarations for Houghton and Menominee counties on Monday, which will allow the National Guard to deploy to the area to help with road repairs. Snyder's office said "hundreds of homes, businesses and public facilities and infrastructure" have been severely affected in the area.
Michigan Tech University and Finlandia University remain closed Monday because of the flooding and road conditions.
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Information from The Associated Press contributed to this report