Police in Farmers Branch are investigating after a mother and her two daughters were found dead inside their car in a parking lot, according to the Kaufman County Sheriff's Department.
Investigators said the three people were reported missing Wednesday.
According to a missing persons flyer sent to NBC 5, 31-year-old Natalie Chambers and her daughters, 4-year-old Izabel and 2-year-old Elise were last seen leaving their house in Forney at 8 a.m. Wednesday. Police said they were headed to a playdate in Grapevine.
A spokesperson for the Kaufman County Sheriff's Office told NBC 5, the three were reported missing around 2:30 p.m. Wednesday.
Investigators pinged Natalie's cell phone, which traced to the intersection of I-635 and Midway Road near the Dallas and Farmers Branch city limits.
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At a press conference Thursday afternoon, Officer Steve Rutherford with the Farmers Branch Police Department said they were requested to assist earlier in the morning by searching the area of 13300 Midway Road.
Chambers' car was found in a parking lot along the 4300 block of Lyndon B. Johnson Freeway. She and her children were inside, Officer Rutherford confirmed.
"The tragic discovery was made that all three occupants of the vehicle were deceased," Rutherford said Thursday.
Amado Silva works in the area and said he noticed the car parked in the lot, but he initially assumed it had a flat tire until he saw police.
"We didn’t see anything wrong with the car, and we didn’t imagine there was a dead body inside," Silva said. "It’s kind of scary, because I never experienced something like that in my life. Especially in front of the place I work for."
Rutherford said cases like these are never easy, both for families involved and officers who respond.
"Anytime you have a loss of life, it’s very tragic. It’s tough on officers to have you a scene where you do have people who have lost their lives and children included. That’s something tough for officers to deal with," he said. "It’s not something many folks have to deal with on a normal basis and unfortunately, many of our officers had to deal with that this morning."
As of Thursday, the cause of death for Chambers and her children remain under investigation.
This is a developing story and more information will be added as it becomes available. Refresh this page to get the latest updates.
