Bodies of 3 missing Amish children found in Ky.

[February 25, 2011]  MAYFIELD, Ky. (AP) -- Three Amish children were swept away and died when the horse-drawn buggy they were in overturned in a creek swollen by heavy rains and authorities were searching for a fourth child Friday.

A married couple along with seven children were trying to cross the creek Thursday night on a roadway in southwestern Kentucky when the buggy overturned, knocking them into the water, Graves County Sheriff Dewayne Redmon told The Associated Press. The couple and three of the children escaped but four other children under age 12 were swept away. The bodies of three of the children -- including a 6-month-old -- were found early Friday, Redmon said. Authorities continued searching for the fourth child, an 11-year-old girl, he said. About 75 to 100 law enforcers, firefighters and volunteers were taking part in the search Friday, Redmon said. Some were searching along the creek and others took to the water in boats. Speaking to NBC's "Today" show, Redmon said he hoped the missing girl might have been able to grab onto something and was waiting for the sun to rise. "We're still praying and hoping that we'll find her alive," he said. The area is a sparsely populated farming community in far western Kentucky, about 25 miles south of Paducah. Torrential rains drenched parts of Kentucky and other states Thursday night. [Associated Press] Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.