Body found in river believed to be that of two-year-old lost in flash flood

The body of a young girl recovered in the Delaware River in Pennsylvania is believed to be that of a two-year-old who was one of two children swept away by a flash flood last weekend.

The body was found in the early evening near a Philadelphia wastewater treatment plant about 30 miles from where Matilda Sheils was carried away, US authorities said.

By physical description, authorities believe the body to be Matilda’s. The Philadelphia coroner will conduct an examination on Saturday.

The search continues for Matilda’s nine-month-old brother, Conrad.

The family, from Charleston, South Carolina, was visiting relatives and friends when they were hit by a “wall of water”, according to Upper Makefield Fire Chief Tim Brewer.

Their mother, 32-year-old Katie Seley, was also killed in the flood, authorities said.

The children’s father, Jim Sheils, grabbed the couple’s four-year-old son, while Ms Seley and a grandmother grabbed the other children, Mr Brewer said.

Mr Sheils and their son made it to safety, but Ms Seley and the grandmother were swept away. The grandmother survived.

Four other people drowned in the area, according to the Bucks County Coroner’s office: Enzo Depiero, 78, and Linda Depiero, 74, of Newtown; Yuko Love, 64, of Newtown; and Susan Barnhart, 53, of Titusville, New Jersey.

The deaths and the search for the children have led to an outpouring of support, particularly in social media, in the suburb about 35 miles north of Philadelphia.