Search for missing girls from summer camp after Texas floods kill at least 24
The destructive force of the flash floods after the Guadalupe River burst its banks just before dawn on Friday washed out homes and swept away vehicles in Texas Hill Country.
There were hundreds of rescues around Kerr County, including at least 167 by helicopter, authorities said, after nearly a foot of rain fell.
The total number of missing is not known, but the sheriff said between 23 and 25 of them were girls who had been attending Camp Mystic, a Christian summer camp along the river.
On social media, parents and families posted desperate pleas for information about loved ones caught in the flood zone.
'The camp was completely destroyed,' said Elinor Lester, 13, one of hundreds of campers at Camp Mystic.
'A helicopter landed and started taking people away. It was really scary.'
She said a raging storm woke up her cabin around 1.30am on Friday (7.30am on Friday BST). When rescuers arrived, they tied a rope for the girls to hold as the children in her cabin walked across the bridge with floodwaters whipping around their knees.
The flooding in the middle of the night on the July 4 US holiday caught many residents, campers and officials by surprise.
Officials defended their preparations for severe weather and their response, but said they had not expected such an intense downpour that was, in effect, the equivalent of months' worth of rain for the area.
One US National Weather Service forecast this week had called for only between three and six inches of rain, said Nim Kidd, the chief of the Texas Division of Emergency Management.
'It did not predict the amount of rain that we saw,' he said.
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36 minutes ago
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Brothers recall terrifying moment they swam for their lives to escape floods
Piers and Ruffin Boyett, 11 and 14, were at Camp La Junta in Hunt, Texas, when a flash flood swept through the area and killed at least 51 people, including four campers Two brothers who narrowly escaped the Texas flash floods have recounted their terrifying ordeal, with one of them having to swim for his life. The horror occurred after the Guadalupe River burst its banks early on Friday. The water rose by 26ft in just 45 minutes, officials said. At least 51 people, including 15 children, have died following the flash floods and dozens remain missing. Piers and Ruffin Boyett were at Camp La Junta in Hunt, Texas, when they spoke to ABC affiliate KSAT about their cabin being inundated during the heavy rains. Piers described how they had to scramble up into the rafters of the cabin to avoid the swiftly rising waters. Ruffin said: "I couldn't sleep because of the lightning," Piers chimed in: "People were screaming that there was a flood. There was a lot of water." Ruffin revealed to the broadcaster that he was the first to stir in his cabin around 4am local time on Friday. He mentioned that another camper woke up simultaneously and dashed to alert the counsellor, who then roused the rest of the boys in the cabin, reports the Mirror US. Once fully awake, the campers grasped the peril they were in. "Oh my God, we're floating," is what Ruffin Boyett remembered thinking. The boys explained that it was at this point they realised they had to act fast. "The flood started getting bigger," Piers remembered. "We have bunk beds in our cabin, and it (the water) was going to the top bunk. We had one choice, and we had to swim out of our cabins." The campers, along with the Boyett brothers, managed to swim to safety and took refuge in a cabin on higher ground before being evacuated by bus from the Guadalupe River. As of Sunday morning, the flood has claimed at least 51 lives. In Hunt, the families of four Camp Mystic campers have confirmed their children perished in the flood. Amidst the catastrophic floods in Kerr County, Texas, over 20 campers are still reported missing. The young campers, Janie Hunt, Renee Smajstrla, Sarah Marsh, and Lila Bonner, all aged nine, have been the first to be found and named publicly. On Friday, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick announced that more than 20 children were still missing at the private Christian summer camp for girls, which accommodates around 750 kids. Over 850 residents of Kerr County have been forced to leave their homes. Kerrville city manager Dalton Rice said there could be more people missing in the region than the 27 girls unaccounted for from Camp Mystic. "We are kind of looking at this in two ways, called the known missing, which is the 27... We will not put a number on the other side because we just don't know," he said at a news conference. He said "hundreds" have been rescued from campsites around the Guadalupe River so far, and searches are ongoing.
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6 hours ago
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Latest toll shows 14 children among 32 dead in Texas flooding
The storm killed at least 32 people, including 14 children. The destructive fast-moving waters rose 26 feet (eight metres) in just 45 minutes before daybreak Friday, washing away homes and vehicles. The danger was not over as torrential rains continued pounding communities outside San Antonio on Saturday and flash flood warnings and watches remained in effect. Searchers used helicopters, boats and drones to look for victims and to rescue stranded people in trees and from camps isolated by washed-out roads. 'We will not stop until we find everyone who is missing,' Nim Kidd, chief of Texas Department of Emergency Management, said at a press conference on Saturday afternoon. Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha said the bodies of 32 people had been recovered so far: 18 adults and 14 children. Authorities were coming under growing scrutiny Saturday over whether the camps and residents in places long vulnerable to flooding received proper warning and whether enough preparations were made. The hills along the Guadalupe River in central Texas are dotted with century-old youth camps and campgrounds where generations of families have come to swim and enjoy the outdoors. The area is especially popular around the July Fourth holiday, making it more difficult to know how many are missing. 'We don't even want to begin to estimate at this time,' said City Manager Dalton Rice said on Saturday morning. Some 27 children were among the missing from Camp Mystic, a Christian summer camp along the river, he said. 'The camp was completely destroyed,' said Elinor Lester, 13, one of hundreds of campers. 'A helicopter landed and started taking people away. It was really scary.' A raging storm fuelled by incredible amounts of moisture woke up her cabin just after midnight Friday, and when rescuers arrived, they tied a rope for the girls to hold as they walked across a bridge with water whipping around their legs, she said. Frantic parents and families posted photos of missing loved ones and pleas for information. On Saturday, the camp was mostly deserted. Helicopters roared above as a few people looked at the damage, including a pickup vehicle tossed onto its side and a building missing its entire front wall. Among those confirmed dead were an eight-year-old girl from Mountain Brook, Alabama, who was staying at Camp Mystic, and the director of another camp just up the road. The flooding in the middle of the night caught many residents, campers and officials by surprise in the Hill Country, which sits northwest of San Antonio. AccuWeather said the private forecasting company and the National Weather Service sent warnings about potential flash flooding hours before the devastation. 'These warnings should have provided officials with ample time to evacuate camps such as Camp Mystic and get people to safety,' AccuWeather said in a statement that called the Hill Country one of the most flash-flood-prone areas of the US because of its terrain and many water crossings. Officials defended their actions while saying they had not expected such an intense downpour that was the equivalent of months' worth of rain for the area. One National Weather Service forecast earlier in the week 'did not predict the amount of rain that we saw', said Nim Kidd, chief of the Texas Division of Emergency Management. Search crews were facing harsh conditions while 'looking in every possible location,' Mr Rice said. Authorities said about 850 people had been rescued. US Coast Guard helicopters were flying in to assist. One reunification centre at an elementary school was mostly quiet Saturday after taking in hundreds of evacuees the day before. 'We still have people coming here looking for their loved ones. We've had a little success, but not much,' said Bobby Templeton, superintendent of Ingram Independent School District. President Donald Trump said Saturday that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was travelling to Texas and his administration was working with officials on the ground. 'Melania and I are praying for all of the families impacted by this horrible tragedy,' Mr Trump said in a statement on his social media network. In Ingram, Erin Burgess woke to thunder and rain in the middle of the night Friday. Just 20 minutes later, water was pouring into her home, she said. She described an agonizing hour clinging to a tree with her teenage son. 'My son and I floated to a tree where we hung onto it, and my boyfriend and my dog floated away. He was lost for a while, but we found them,' she said. Barry Adelman said water pushed everyone in his three-story house into the attic, including his 94-year-old grandmother and nine-year-old grandson. 'I was having to look at my grandson in the face and tell him everything was going to be OK, but inside I was scared to death,' he said. 'When it rains, water doesn't soak into the soil,' said Austin Dickson, chief executive of the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country, which was collecting donations. 'It rushes down the hill.' The forecast for the weekend had called for rain, with a flood watch upgraded to a warning overnight Friday for at least 30,000 people. Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick said the potential for heavy rain and flooding covered a large area. 'Everything was done to give them a heads up that you could have heavy rain, and we're not exactly sure where it's going to land,' Mr Patrick said. 'Obviously as it got dark last night, we got into the wee morning of the hours, that's when the storm started to zero in.' Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly, the county's chief elected official, said: 'We do not have a warning system.' When pushed on why more precautions were not taken, Mr Kelly said no one knew this kind of flood was coming. The slow-moving storm is bringing more rain Saturday, with the potential for pockets of heavy downpours and more flooding, said Jason Runyen, of the National Weather Service. The threat could linger overnight and into Sunday morning, he said.
South Wales Guardian
6 hours ago
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Latest toll shows 14 children among 32 dead in Texas flooding
The storm killed at least 32 people, including 14 children. The destructive fast-moving waters rose 26 feet (eight metres) in just 45 minutes before daybreak Friday, washing away homes and vehicles. The danger was not over as torrential rains continued pounding communities outside San Antonio on Saturday and flash flood warnings and watches remained in effect. Searchers used helicopters, boats and drones to look for victims and to rescue stranded people in trees and from camps isolated by washed-out roads. 'We will not stop until we find everyone who is missing,' Nim Kidd, chief of Texas Department of Emergency Management, said at a press conference on Saturday afternoon. Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha said the bodies of 32 people had been recovered so far: 18 adults and 14 children. Authorities were coming under growing scrutiny Saturday over whether the camps and residents in places long vulnerable to flooding received proper warning and whether enough preparations were made. 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Frantic parents and families posted photos of missing loved ones and pleas for information. On Saturday, the camp was mostly deserted. Helicopters roared above as a few people looked at the damage, including a pickup vehicle tossed onto its side and a building missing its entire front wall. Among those confirmed dead were an eight-year-old girl from Mountain Brook, Alabama, who was staying at Camp Mystic, and the director of another camp just up the road. The flooding in the middle of the night caught many residents, campers and officials by surprise in the Hill Country, which sits northwest of San Antonio. AccuWeather said the private forecasting company and the National Weather Service sent warnings about potential flash flooding hours before the devastation. 'These warnings should have provided officials with ample time to evacuate camps such as Camp Mystic and get people to safety,' AccuWeather said in a statement that called the Hill Country one of the most flash-flood-prone areas of the US because of its terrain and many water crossings. Officials defended their actions while saying they had not expected such an intense downpour that was the equivalent of months' worth of rain for the area. One National Weather Service forecast earlier in the week 'did not predict the amount of rain that we saw', said Nim Kidd, chief of the Texas Division of Emergency Management. Search crews were facing harsh conditions while 'looking in every possible location,' Mr Rice said. Authorities said about 850 people had been rescued. US Coast Guard helicopters were flying in to assist. One reunification centre at an elementary school was mostly quiet Saturday after taking in hundreds of evacuees the day before. 'We still have people coming here looking for their loved ones. We've had a little success, but not much,' said Bobby Templeton, superintendent of Ingram Independent School District. President Donald Trump said Saturday that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was travelling to Texas and his administration was working with officials on the ground. 'Melania and I are praying for all of the families impacted by this horrible tragedy,' Mr Trump said in a statement on his social media network. In Ingram, Erin Burgess woke to thunder and rain in the middle of the night Friday. Just 20 minutes later, water was pouring into her home, she said. She described an agonizing hour clinging to a tree with her teenage son. 'My son and I floated to a tree where we hung onto it, and my boyfriend and my dog floated away. He was lost for a while, but we found them,' she said. Barry Adelman said water pushed everyone in his three-story house into the attic, including his 94-year-old grandmother and nine-year-old grandson. 'I was having to look at my grandson in the face and tell him everything was going to be OK, but inside I was scared to death,' he said. 'When it rains, water doesn't soak into the soil,' said Austin Dickson, chief executive of the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country, which was collecting donations. 'It rushes down the hill.' The forecast for the weekend had called for rain, with a flood watch upgraded to a warning overnight Friday for at least 30,000 people. Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick said the potential for heavy rain and flooding covered a large area. 'Everything was done to give them a heads up that you could have heavy rain, and we're not exactly sure where it's going to land,' Mr Patrick said. 'Obviously as it got dark last night, we got into the wee morning of the hours, that's when the storm started to zero in.' Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly, the county's chief elected official, said: 'We do not have a warning system.' When pushed on why more precautions were not taken, Mr Kelly said no one knew this kind of flood was coming. The slow-moving storm is bringing more rain Saturday, with the potential for pockets of heavy downpours and more flooding, said Jason Runyen, of the National Weather Service. The threat could linger overnight and into Sunday morning, he said.
