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PETAL, Mississippi — A 36-year-old woman, identified as Rachel Floyd of Oak Grove, Mississippi, died on Monday, May 25, 2026, after flash floodwaters swept her white SUV across a shopping center parking lot and submerged it. The incident occurred between 3:00 and 3:29 p.m. CDT at the Eastbrook Commons shopping center near a Walmart on Byrd Boulevard in Petal, a city of about 10,000 adjacent to Hattiesburg in Forrest County. Multiple witnesses called 911 as rapidly rising water turned the lot into a dangerous current. Petal fire and police officials said the SUV was carried across the parking area, funneled through a culvert beneath Highway 42 and submerged on the far side. Dive rescue teams located Floyd’s body roughly 30 minutes after the first emergency reports, and crews recovered the vehicle from the water at about 6:00 p.m., around two hours after the initial calls. Restaurant worker Luisa Ortega, who was inside Los Charros Mexican Grill at Eastbrook Commons, said water quickly flooded the dining room and kitchen as bystanders watched the SUV struggle in the current and tried unsuccessfully to reach the driver before the vehicle overturned and disappeared underwater. City officials reported floodwaters rose to about 12 feet at the peak of the event, after 4 to 6 inches of rain fell rapidly across southeastern Mississippi, washing out at least one road and forcing closures on about 30 roads in Hattiesburg, Petal and Forrest County. Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves confirmed Floyd’s death, which authorities cited as a stark example of how deadly flash flooding can develop in ordinary parking lots. The National Weather Service and AccuWeather kept flash flood watches and warnings in place through at least Wednesday as part of a broader multi-state severe weather pattern bringing repeated rounds of heavy rain and elevated flash flood risk from Texas to the Carolinas and parts of Florida.

By Daniel Hayes | JQJO News