MARTHASVILLE, Mo. — Authorities say a 7-year-old girl has drowned after her mother lost her way on a dusty gravel road and drove into an eastern Missouri pond.
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that rescuers in Warren County responded Saturday to the submerged vehicle that held 30-year-old Reem Alkhirafi and her three children. Two of the children made it to shore with help from rescuers.
But the Missouri Department of Public Safety says Safa Alkhirafi, of Chesterfield, drowned, and her mother was taken to a hospital in serious condition.
Islamic Foundation of Greater St. Louis head of social services Adil Imdad says Safa was born in Brooklyn, New York, and her parents were from a village in Yemen. He says the family moved to Missouri to be in a safer environment.
___
Information from: St. Louis Post-Dispatch, http://www.stltoday.com
