WASHINGTON, United States, Aug 16, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - At least five people were killed by severe storms and flooding this week in the midwestern state of Indiana, authorities said Saturday.

Dozens have been rescued from flooded areas and hundreds have had to evacuate their homes, The Indianapolis Star newspaper reported.

The storm began pummeling Indiana on Tuesday, Governor Mike Braun said in a statement. The weather system included "tornadic activity and a derecho," which is a widespread, long-lived wind storm.

The victims included a 58-year-old woman whose car was believed to have been swept away by floodwaters, an 18-year-old man who jumped into a swollen river with friends and a four-year-old boy who died when a tree fell onto a home, local media reported.

News footage showed a river that had overflowed its banks, with the brown water nearly reaching the bottom of a bridge. Rescuers zoomed by in a raft.

Braun posted on X that he spoke with US President Donald Trump on Saturday "about the severe storms and historic flooding" to request federal aid.

Indiana's Homeland Security Director Jonathan Whitham said a "very extensive cleanup and recovery operation" will be needed.