NEWSPAPER: Accounts of downings of Derek Flowers and his daughter, Warm Springs Indian Reservation, Oregon ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm ************************************************ Transcribed and formatted for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Earline Wasser February 2003 ********************************************************************************* The Dalles Chronicle February 3, 2003 Derek and Tunmaya Flowers' Bodies Found SEARCHERS FIND ACCIDENT VICTIMS Front page WARM SPRINGS (AP) - Search crews have recovered the body of a 37-year-old man who had been missing and presumed drowned since late last week. Searchers spotted the body of Derek Flowers on Wednesday a short distance from where his 3-year-old daughter's body was found Tuesday, said Officer Bob Medina of the Warm Springs (Oregon) Police Department. Flowers had been fishing with his two young daughters in the South Junction (Oregon) area of the Warm Springs Indian Reservation on January 31, Medina said. The girls were siting in Flowers' pickup when it began to roll into the river, according to police. The 5-year-old escaped, but Flowers dived into the river after his younger daughter, Tunmaya Scott-Flowers. The Dalles Chronicle February 6, 2003. TWO MISSING ON DESCHUTES by Neita Cecil of The Chronicle Front page The search continues today for a 37-year-old man and his 3-year-old daughter who fell into the Deschutes River early Friday night and are presumed drowned. The incident was first reported a little after 5 p.m. Friday, January 31, by witnesses who saw somebody floating down the river, waving his arms, and right behind him in the water his 1965 Chevrolet pickup. The pickup was recovered Sunday about two and a half miles downstream, after being spotted by the Oregon Civil Air Patrol, said Officer Robert Medina of the Warm Springs Police Department. Derek Flowers was fishing in a heavy rain with his two daughters along the Deschutes just east of the Kah-Nee-Ta High Desert Resort and Casino when his truck somehow went into the water, Medina said. Medina is not releasing the names of the daughters at this time. Flowers, a Warm Springs resident, is married to a tribal member, Medina said. When the pickup somehow went in the water - police aren't sure how - Flowers was able to get his 5-year-old out of the river, Medina said. "He went back for the 3-year-old and we haven't seen him since," Medina said. Flowers' fishing gear was found on the river bank along with tire tracks leading into the water. His fishing pole was on the bank, with the line still in the water, Medina said. Over 50 people, including volunteers, have been searching for the man and daughter. Plans for today included placing a net in the water a few miles downstream from where they went in, Medina said. Helping with the search and rescue are Warm Springs Natural Resources Department, Warm Springs Fire and Safety, Warm Springs Police Department, Oregon State Police, Wasco County Search and Rescue, Camp Sherman Search and Rescue and the Oregon Civil Air Patrol. Searchers are scouring the river and its banks in boats, on horseback and on ATVs (All Terrain Vehicles). The search will continue until the bodies are found, Medina said. "Our tradition is when something like this happens we can't rest until the bodies are taken out, or found." Written permission to reprint given by The Dalles Chronicle, The Dalles, Oregon