Found Deceased CA - Sandeep 42, Soumya 38, Siddhant 12, Saachi Thottapilly, 9, Klamath, 5 Apr 2018

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Looking at photos it's crazy to me that they have not yet found the vehicle.
It's seems so shallow.
 
Lilibet said:
Excellent article with pictures of the recovery effort, and details about the witnesses. As the CHP officer told them, if they hadn’t seen and reported the accident, no one would have known.

[FONT=&]“Pat Berkowitz caught just a glimpse before the vehicle that had been pulling over in front of the car he was riding in tipped sideways, thrust two wheels into the air, and tumbled over the bank and out of sight on Friday, April 5 north of Leggett. Frantically, he called 911 as his wife pulled their car into the next pullout.[/FONT][FONT=&]In terror, he said, he ran back up the road and followed the vehicle over the bank to where he could see the Eel River. There was nothing, the 67-year-old said, but oil spreading over the surface of the water.”

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Section of Eel River where vehicle is believed to have gone in. Photo by Mark McKenna.[/FONT]

http://kymkemp.com/2018/04/11/witne...of-leggett-searchers-scour-the-river-tuesday/
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Thanks for the update Lilibet. Dang that was so traumatizing for the witnesses.....I feel such empathy for them to have observed the car go over the edge, I got chills reading their account. And for the family inside the car - I can’t even go there.
 
Davia18 said:
Looking at photos it's crazy to me that they have not yet found the vehicle.
It's seems so shallow.
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The second video in this article shows the reality of the river. There are both gravel bars and deep spots.

Also, note the cars traveling by on the highway far above the river. I’ve been on that stretch dozens of times or more, and it’s treacherous, especially in bad weather. I lived a little further north in southern Humboldt County and the earth would become so saturated with rain that parts of roads would cave in. It doesn’t appear that the turnout broke off from what we’ve heard, but it could certainly be hard to stop if you misjudged. Cars tailgait and there is often pressure to pull over to let them pass, so it would be easy to pull off too fast. Not saying that happened here, but it’s the nature of the road.

http://kymkemp.com/2018/04/11/motor...earch-for-vehicle-submerged-in-the-eel-river/
 
HLN just reported on this story. Showed surveillance video of the family leaving their home on the trip, interviewed a neighbor, but no new information.
 
[h=1]CHP: Parts Of Missing Family’s SUV May Have Been Located[/h]
LEGGETT (CBS SF) — Teams searching the area where a SUV was seen careening into the murky, swollen waters of the Eel River in rural Mendocino County may have located parts of a missing Southern California family’s vehicle, authorities said Wednesday.

Sandeep Thottapilly, his wife and children have not been heard from since late last week when they were in Klamath-Redwood National Park area in Northern California. They had been on a Spring Break road trip, traveling home on Highway 101 from Portland to Santa Clarita.
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An intense search of the river was launched by at least half a dozen law enforcement entities including at least one CHP helicopter. Crews up on steep bluffs with 100-plus foot drops from road to water assisted crews along the river bed looking for the SUV.

On Wednesday, Wunderlich said search crews had found what they believe to be parts of the SUV along the river bank. They believe the vehicle may have been heavily damaged as it bounced off trees before entering the river.
Rain and even hail was again falling in the area on Wednesday, slowing the progress of the search. Wunderlich said no sign of Sandeep or his wife, Soumya, or the children — 12-year-old Siddhant and 9-year-old Saachi — have been found.
By early evening, weather conditions had led authorities to suspend their search on the Eel River for the day.
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http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2018/04/11/chp-missing-familys-suv-parts-eel-river/

:(
 
?mysterian? said:
Latest update http://kymkemp.com/2018/04/12/relat...identify-items-found-at-eel-river-crash-site/ Summary of the link: Some of the Thottapilly family has identified items found near the possible crash site as belonging to the missing family members. Search continues for the family and their vehicle. The river level was still elevated due to another storm in the area.
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Thank you mysterian,

From the link:

The family expressed that they wanted to see the accident site. While there, searchers located multiple items in the river. Sandeep Thottapilly’s brother recognized a cap belonging to his missing sibling. His cousin recognized little Saachi’s sweater.
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:(

They already searched 12 miles of the river bank and still no car!

Also:
an incoming storm forced the searches actually on the river itself to shut down until Friday
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From the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office statement:
On 4/10 and again on 4/11/2018 it was determined the water levels would allow the insertion of Swift Water Rescue Teams to conduct a bank search as well as some limited “probing”, a technique using a long pole being probed underwater to see if the vehicle or anything metallic could be located.
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The teams were unsuccessful in locating the vehicle or any occupants from the vehicle. They were able to locate numerous items that appeared to have come from a vehicle body and interior. Some of these items were consistent with a Honda vehicle. Also located were various personal items that were consistent with a family traveling on vacation. Several items have been positively identified, by family members, as belonging to the Thottapilly family. These items were of a personal nature and will not be described further at this time, but it does confirm the fact the vehicle that was seen going into the river was that of the Thottapilly family.
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bbm

A joint Press Conference of the California Highway Patrol and the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office will be held at the Leggett Cal FIRE Station, 69310 North Highway 101 Leggett, at noon on 4/13/2018 to answer any press related questions related to this investigation.
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bbm
 
Elainera said:
Thank you mysterian,

From the link:



:(

They already searched 12 miles of the river bank and still no car!

Also:


From the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office statement:

bbm

bbm
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Elainera: Thanks for the update. Not good. Prayers for family and friends.
 
Child's body found week after family's car plunged into river
The child's body was found this morning about 7 miles south of where the crash happened, Mendocino County Sheriff Tom Allman said at a news conference. Allman did not say which of the two children was found.

The parents and the other child remain missing. Crews have recovered car parts and some of their belongings, authorities said.
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http://abcnews.go.com/US/childs-body-found-week-familys-car-plunged-river/story?id=54441874
 
I wonder why they pulled over? It was raining, so probably not to look at the scenery. Maybe to look at a map?
 
This is just so tragic. I hope they find them all so they can be laid to rest together. :tears:
 
The car was either very damaged or a window or door was opened for all the items to be found floating, and now a body too. But apparently the door/window was not opened in time, or they were all already unconscious and not able to get out.
 
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