Missouri boy, 13, drowns during flooding in Joplin

JOPLIN, Mo. (AP) - A 13-year-old Missouri boy drowned during flash flooding over the weekend in Joplin, Missouri.

The Joplin Police Department told the Springfield News-Leader that John D. Wheeler, of Carl Junction, Missouri, died Saturday.

Police said Wheeler was walking by the water in a drainage ditch when he fell in on Saturday morning. Wheeler was swept away.

Officers later found him near a bridge and pulled him from the water. Wheeler was taken to a local hospital where he died.