COLUMBIA, Mo. — An assistant fire chief in central Missouri died early Monday when the boat he was in capsized during a water rescue in a flash flood.
The Boone County Fire Protection District said Matthew Tobben and another firefighter had just rescued two people from flooded Bear Creek in Columbia when the boat overturned. The other firefighter and the two rescued people were OK after being pulled from the water, but Tobben drowned, the district said in a Facebook posting.
Heavy rain led to several water rescues in the Columbia area. Rivers and creeks were already high after a rainy early summer. More rain is expected through Tuesday as the remnant of Tropical Storm Beryl makes it into Missouri.
Fire officials said the boat Tobben was in lost power, but it wasn’t immediately clear why it capsized.
Tobben’s death was the second blamed on flash flooding in Boone County in about a week. A woman died Wednesday when the car she was in became trapped in floodwater.