We recommend this sad article: They Were Seeking Mental Health Care. Instead They Drowned in a Sheriff’s Van. Two women drowned in the back of a sheriff’s van in South Carolina after the sheriff’s deputies drove down a road that was blocked off because of flooding. Floodwaters overtook the van. The deputies survived by climbing on top of the van and awaiting emergency rescue services. The deputies could not rescue the two women, who drowned in the back of the van. The women were mental health patients who were being taken from hospitals to mental health treatment centers. This was an avoidable tragedy. The deputies drove on a road that was blocked off due to flooding. This transport could have waited until travel was safe.