How to help family of Pasco student who died after being pulled from canal
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- Community members have set up donation boxes and a GoFundMe
- Rowena Chess Elementary and Pasco deployed crisis intervention teams and staff support
- District employees spotted the girl in the canal and an autopsy is planned
Community members are raising money to help after the tragic death of a 7-year-old girl in Prosser.
Pictures on donation boxes show Isabella Flores Trinidad smiling broadly. The girl, who is deaf and attends elementary school in Pasco, died Friday afternoon after being pulled from the Sunnyside Valley Irrigation District’s main canal.
“We are kindly asking for donations to help the family with funeral expenses, any amount is greatly appreciated,” the message on the donation box said. “Thank you, God bless, and please keep her family in your prayers.”
The boxes were set up at Hiway Fruit Market in Sunnyside along with Westside Market and Abarrotes La Costeñita in Grandview, according to a Facebook post.
The donation boxes are in addition to a GoFundMe campaign created by Flores’ aunt, Destiny Vargas that aims to help the family with funeral and legal expenses. The online fundraiser had received $3,650 in donations through Tuesday morning
Pasco school officials also reacted to the girl’s sudden death. While she lived in Prosser, she attended classes at Rowena Chess Elementary School as part of a special program for students who are deaf and hard of hearing.
The district sent a notice to parents about the death, and has a crisis intervention team available to help students, parents and school personnel. School district counselors, nurses and other staff are working with the team to be available to students.
“The Pasco School District is deeply saddened to confirm the loss of one of our Chess Elementary students, second-grader Isabella Flores Trinidad,” the district said in a formal statement. “This is a heartbreaking loss for her family, classmates, and our entire school community. Our thoughts are with Isabella’s family during this incredibly difficult time.”
Death investigation
Benton County Sheriff’s Office is continuing to investigate the death that started with a report of a missing child at the 130000 block of Taylor Road outside of Prosser.
Deputies were called to the property about 1:20 p.m. and searched using drones and a police dog, but came up empty.
Investigators have not released any details about how Flores ended up in the main canal of the Sunnyside Valley Irrigation District, which cuts through the 4-acre property she disappeared from.
The 60-mile long canal runs from Union Gap to Whitstran, district Manager David Felman told the Tri-City Herald. They had just started delivering water to customers earlier in April.
On Friday, the canal was carrying about 2,200 gallons of water past any single point every second. This is equivalent to 58 plastic kiddie pools every second. The water flows at close to three-quarters of a mile per hour.
District employees were patrolling the canal, as part of their regular duties, when they spotted the girl face down in the water about 2 miles away from home about 2:30 p.m.
Deputies responded to the area and one removed his gear and jumped into the water.
After pulling her to shore, deputies and medical personnel tried to revive her. She was taken to Kadlec Regional Medical Center for treatment, where she was pronounced dead.
Several questions surround the death, including how she died, where she went into the water and if there was anything suspicious about her death.
The Benton County Coroner’s Office plans to have an autopsy on Wednesday or Thursday.
This story was originally published April 14, 2026 at 12:37 PM.