Women die in flooded van driven by SC deputies

The van was carrying the detainees to a different facility in Darlington, South Carolina when it was overtaken by flood waters on Tuesday.

Thompson said it took rescue crews about 45 minutes to find the van and get to it via boat.

Marion County Coroner Jerry Richardson tells The Associated Press that 45-year-old Windy Wenton and 43-year-old Nicolette Green were being transported by a Horry County Sheriff's Office van between Nichols and Mullins on Tuesday night when the van was swept away by rising waters.

Hershberger said that her mother was diagnosed with schizophrenia three years ago and took medication for the condition; a new therapist who Green visited on September 18, determined she needed to be committed to a mental institution.

Richardson says the incident happened near the Little Pee Dee River, which is one of the bodies of water officials are monitoring for intense flooding following Florence.

Two mental health patients in SC have died after being inside a transport van that flooded.

Both deputies "attempted to extricate the persons being transported", the news release said.

When it comes to the deputies who assist in transport, Thompson said that they have gone through extensive intense training.

Thompson also said he didn't know if the deputies had driven around any barricades blocking the roads. They have been placed on administrative leave, the HCSO said in a statement.

The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division is investigating the incident. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert) Rising flood waters in the Pee Dee area in Marion County, S.C., seen on September 17, 2018. "It's come up 2 feet since last night".

'Tonight's incident is a tragedy, ' he said.

"They got out and tried to open the van to get the ladies out", Thompson told reporters on Wednesday. 'Just like you, we have questions we want answered'. Rescue teams plucked the deputies from the top of the van.

"I was confused as to why someone would, or the police officers would drive down a road that was in an area that was known for flooding".

South Carolina Law Enforcement Division Spokesman Thom Berry said recovery efforts are set for today - the van and the victims remain in the flood waters at the scene. "I am not sure if it was the way the van was positioned against the guardrail or it was pressure from the water". Compounding the problem, storm runoff from North Carolina - which was battered by Florence - is now flowing through the Palmetto State via the Yadkin-Pee Dee drainage basin, which terminates in Winyah Bay near Georgetown, S.C.