July 4 festivities ended badly for the family of 3 young children after their bodies were recovered at about 6:15 this evening from the Iowa River earlier today, having drowned in the river during an outing for the holiday with friends and family.



The bodies of a 7 and 9 year-old girl and a 7 year old boy were recovered from the Iowa River today after authorities searched for them for over three hours. The bodies were recovered in the river about 50 miles northeast of Des Moines in an area of the river near Marhalltown.

The children apparently drowned in the river after swimming in the river near Riverview Park during a July 4 outing.

The children were separated from others who were swimming during the festivities and drowned in the water before they were able to be recovered from it. They went down under the water and did not come up.

According to a report from Marhalltown Police Chief Mike Tupper on usatoday.com, the three children are all family members.

According to Tupper, the children probably drowned because the drought that has been going on has left the river unpredictable. The river is very shallow in some places and very deep in others. The variability cannot be seen, which is very dangerous for swimmers in the river, especially for children.

This is the second drowning incident that has happened in the Iowa River this summer. Another child drowned in the same portion of the river not far away.