A man's body was found Tuesday inside a vehicle buried under several feet of mud in Palmdale, California, after a severe storm sparked flash flooding and debris flows, trapping hundreds of vehicles in the area.
Homicide detectives and coroner officials were called to a residential area in Palmdale after what appeared to be a body was found inside the vehicle, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Deputy Don Walker told BuzzFeed News.
#Breaking Crews are working to remove a body found in a car buried under several feet of mud in #Palmdale.
The vehicle was found buried under six feet of mud, NBC News reported, upside down and tilted. Firefighters called deputies after trying to dig the vehicle out and finding the body inside.
The man was identified by coroner officials Wednesday as 49-year-old Robert Rasmussen of Palmdale.
His younger brother, Robert Driscoll, told The Los Angeles Times Rasmussen was buried in his SUV Thursday as debris flows swept through the Antelope Valley.
Rasmussen was on his way to his parent's home from work.
Los Angeles County Sheriff officials said the cause of death has not been determined, but there is no suspicion of foul play.
The vehicle was buried last week as Southern California was slammed by a slow-moving storm, causing debris flows that damaged homes, roads, and buried several vehicles in some areas.
One rain gauge in the northern Los Angeles County community of Leona Valley reported 3.38 inches of rain in one hour, which the National Weather Service described as a “1,000-year rainfall event.”
Along Interstate 5 and Highway 58, about 200 vehicles were buried.
The damage prompted the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday to declare a state of emergency, as emergency personnel and public works officials try to get an estimate on the total cost of damage.