
Texas Flood Death Toll: Families desperate as number reaches 52; 27 girls still unaccounted for as searches continue
Kerr County: 44 confirmed dead. Most victims were swept away along the Guadalupe River near Hunt and Ingram, where floodwaters rose over 25 feet in under an hour.
Travis County: 5 dead. Several cars were caught on flooded roads west of Austin.
Burnet County: 2 dead. A father and daughter were found in a trailer near Lake Buchanan.
Kendall County: 1 confirmed dead. A woman's body was recovered near Comfort after her car was washed off a rural crossing.
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The missing and the waiting
A region known for danger
Frantic rescues, bitter questions
Families swept away
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When the rain came, it wasn't gentle. It battered central Texas in the early hours of Friday, turning the Guadalupe River into a raging force that rose 26 feet in just 45 minutes. By Saturday night, the floods had killed at least 52 people, 15 of them children, and left rescuers combing through debris and mud for the missing.In Kerr County alone, 43 lives were lost. Many were campers at Camp Mystic , a Christian summer retreat that had stood along the river for nearly a century. It's here that 27 girls are still unaccounted for.'The camp was completely destroyed,' said Elinor Lester, 13, one of the survivors. 'A helicopter landed and started taking people away. It was really scary.'The death toll from the flash floods that ripped through Texas Hill Country has climbed to 52, including 15 children. Search teams are still combing through debris and swollen rivers, with 27 girls from Camp Mystic still missing. Here's what we know so far about where victims were found:Search teams have rescued more than 850 people so far — some from trees, others from rooftops. But there's a grim sense that time is slipping away. Dalton Rice, Kerrville City Manager, said, 'We're tracking the 'known missing' — the 27 — but there could be others. We simply don't know yet.'At an elementary school acting as a reunification centre, families wait for news. Some cling to hope. Others brace for the worst.'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.This part of Texas has a nickname: flash flood alley . It's earned. The Hill Country is all rugged slopes and shallow soils that shed rain like a tin roof.'When it rains, water doesn't soak into the soil,' said Austin Dickson, CEO of the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country. 'It rushes down the hill.'In the past, officials had considered setting up a flood siren system along the river — like the tornado sirens in the Midwest. 'We know we get rains. We know the river rises. But nobody saw this coming,' said Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly. He admitted the plan for flood warnings never got off the ground, partly because of the cost.Inside Camp Mystic, the chaos came fast. Some campers crossed bridges roped together in knee-high water. Others were lifted out by helicopter. An 8-year-old girl from Alabama was among the confirmed dead. Jane Ragsdale, co-owner of Heart O' the Hills, another nearby camp, died in the flooding too.Governor Greg Abbott declared a state of disaster and urged Texans to pray. 'I urge every Texan to join me in prayer this Sunday — for the lives lost, for those still missing, for the recovery of our communities, and for the safety of those on the front lines,' he said.Yet there's anger too. AccuWeather claimed its warnings, along with alerts from the National Weather Service, should have given officials enough time to evacuate vulnerable camps. 'These warnings should have provided officials with ample time to evacuate camps such as Camp Mystic and get people to safety,' the company said.Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem admitted the forecast had fallen short. 'A moderate flood watch issued on Thursday… did not accurately predict the extreme rainfall,' she said.Former NOAA director Rick Spinrad put it more bluntly: 'People's ability to prepare for these storms will be compromised. It undoubtedly means that additional lives will be lost and probably more property damage.'There's no shortage of horror stories. Erin Burgess and her teenage son clung to a tree for an hour after water poured into their house. '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 watched water drive his entire family — including his 94-year-old grandmother and his 9-year-old grandson — into the attic. '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.'W. Nim Kidd, chief of the Texas Division of Emergency Management, promised that no one will give up. 'The process is going to keep going,' he said. 'We're not going to stop until we find everyone that's missing.'President Donald Trump offered prayers and federal aid. 'Our Brave First Responders are on site doing what they do best,' he posted.Yet for many families in the Hill Country, the truth is harder than any headline. Tonia Fucci summed up the mood as she stood in Comfort, a town downstream from Camp Mystic. 'Complete shock. I'm still in shock today. And with the rescues going on and helicopters, you just know there's so many missing children and missing people. You just want them to be found for the sake of the families. But, you know, it's not going to be a good ending.'Here's the thing. In places like this, rain can turn deadly overnight. The question is whether this time, someone should have seen it coming.(With inputs from Agencies)
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Hindustan Times
an hour ago
- Hindustan Times
Texas flash floods: 27 campers and counselors killed in Camp Mystic
The deadly floods in Texas have killed some 27 campers and counselors at Camp Mystic, Reuters reported, citing a statement from the camp. Camp Mystic in the community of Hunt in Kerr County is a Christian girls' camp that opened in 1926.(AP) The camp in the community of Hunt in Kerr County is a Christian girls' camp that opened in 1926. "Camp Mystic is grieving the loss of 27 campers and counselors following the catastrophic flooding on the Guadalupe River," the camp said in a statement. The catastrophic flash floods that struck Texas over the Fourth of July holiday weekend killed at least 82 people, with others still missing, including the girls attending summer camp. The risk of life-threatening flooding still lurked over central Texas as more rain was forecast for the region. Texas Governor Greg Abbott warned that additional rounds of heavy rainfall lasting into Tuesday could bring more dangerous flooding, especially in places already saturated. Abbott said that 41 people were still unaccounted for across the state, fearing that more could be missing. Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha said that in the Hill Country area, searchers found bodies of 68 people, including 28 children. Ten other deaths were also reported in the Travis, Burnet, Kendall, Tom Green and Williamson counties, local officials said. ALSO READ | Camp Mystic flooding: Republican lawmaker reunites with his two daughters after deadly Texas floods The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) was also activated late on Sunday after President Donald Trump signed a major disaster declaration for Kerr County, saying that he would likely visit the flood-hit region on Friday. "I would have done it today, but we'd just be in their way," he told reporters. Trump further said, "It's a horrible thing that took place, absolutely horrible." Earlier at Campy Mystic, a cabin full of girls held onto a rope thrown to them by rescuers as they tried to walk across a bridge with water running over their legs. An 8-year-old girl from Alabama's Mountain Brook, who was at Camp Mystic, and the director of another camp up the road, were among those confirmed dead. A row also erupted over residents and people present in the area not receiving the flood alert earlier. The National Weather Service first advised of potential flooding and then sent out a series of flash flood warnings early on Friday before issuing flash flood emergencies, which is a rare alert to notify of imminent danger. Kerrville City Manager Dalton Rice said authorities are committed to a full review of the emergency response.


News18
4 hours ago
- News18
Texas Floods: Over 80 Dead, Including 28 Children, As Search For Missing Continues
Last Updated: The floods were triggered by an unprecedented downpour, reports indicate rainfall may have reached up to 15 inches in under an hour Rescue teams in central Texas are racing to locate dozens still missing after flash floods swept through the region, claiming the lives of more than 80 people, including 28 children. Local authorities have warned that further rain could bring more devastation. In Kerr County—the hardest-hit area—Sheriff Larry Leitha confirmed the deaths of 68 people, among them 28 children, all victims of the Saturday morning deluge. Nearby counties in south-central Texas reported at least 14 more fatalities. Across the state, 41 individuals are known to be missing, Governor Greg Abbott announced. Teams deployed 17 helicopters and drones alongside ground crews in the search, focusing especially on Camp Mystic, a Christian summer camp on the banks of the Guadalupe River. The camp, which sheltered around 750 people, was struck when floodwaters surged overnight, sweeping away cabins and campers. Ten girls and a counsellor remain unaccounted for at the site. Over 850 residents across the region have been rescued so far. Emergency services, including boats, helicopters, and drones, continue to patrol flooded rivers and debris-laden terrain, contending with searing heat, snakes, and unstable ground. The floods were triggered by an unprecedented downpour, reports indicate rainfall may have reached up to 15 inches in under an hour. This caused the normally placid Guadalupe River to rise by as much as 26 feet in mere minutes, engulfing nearby towns. Governor Abbott has called for a review of local warning systems and flood forecasting accuracy. Some residents have raised concerns about whether the event could have been anticipated more effectively. When asked about reports that budget cuts had impacted the National Weather Service (NWS), Trump said he would not consider rehiring meteorologists. He also declined to confirm whether he would reverse plans to phase out the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), saying, 'FEMA is something we can talk about later." Despite his previous stance that disaster response should be handled at the state level, Trump signed a major disaster declaration on Sunday, authorising federal assistance and activating FEMA to support rescue and relief operations in Texas. (With inputs from AFP)


NDTV
6 hours ago
- NDTV
"Bodies On Trees, Fish Rotting On Banks": Scenes Of Flood Destruction In Texas
Texas: The search and rescue teams plodded through mud-laden riverbanks and flew aircraft over the flood-stricken landscape of central Texas in the United States for a fourth day on Monday, searching for scores of people still missing after the flash floods claimed nearly 80 lives. Most of the deaths from Friday's flash floods were concentrated in the riverfront Hill Country in Texas's Kerrville, where at least 68 people died, including 28 children, according to authorities. The predawn torrential downpours, starting the night before the Independence Day holiday, caused the Guadalupe River to transform into a raging, killer torrent that ran directly through Kerrville, wreaking havoc. The river rose to the height of a two-story building in less than an hour, flooding several children's camps, tearing down trees and tossing cars as if they were toys. Cries For Help As the raging river burst its banks and washed her house, a young woman named Joyce Bandon sent a text message that may have been her last. Bandon and three friends had gone to a country house to spend the July 4 holiday together. Her SOS message triggered a frantic search effort, according to Louis Deppe, leader of a group of volunteers trying to help the Bandon family find their daughter. "Their house collapsed at about 4 in the morning and they were being washed away. On her cellphone, the last message (her family) got was 'we're being washed away' and the phone went dead," Deppe told news agency AFP. He said the team works in groups of two or three people as they look through the debris and detritus left behind by the deluge. "One of the bodies was 8 to 10 feet in a tree, surrounded by so much debris. Not one person could see it, so the more eyes, the better," he added. According to Texas Governor Greg Abbott, "Across the state, in all the areas affected by flooding, there are 41 known missing." In central Texas, some 17 helicopters joined the search for missing people, including ten girls and a counsellor from a riverside Christian summer camp where about 750 people had been staying when disaster struck. Blankets, teddy bears and other belongings at the camp were caked in mud, after windows in the cabins were shattered, apparently by the force of the water. A video surfaced on social media capturing the moment rescuers saved a woman clinging to a tree, who was dragged 20 miles down the Guadalupe River during the deadly Fourth of July floods. The 22-year-old woman was seen desperately clinging to the branches of a Cypress tree, several feet above the ground, as floodwaters rushed below her. She was rescued after a Centre Point homeowner heard her screaming for help and rushed to her aid, KEN5S reported. 🚨INCREDIBLE RESCUE / SURVIVAL STORY 🚨 A 22-year-old woman was rescued from a tree in Center Point, TX after she reportedly floated for more than 10 miles down the Guadalupe River from Ingram, TX. — Gage Goulding - KPRC 2 (@GageGoulding) July 5, 2025 Rescue Efforts Underway The river is returning to normal now, but visuals from Texas show there is utter destruction everywhere on the river banks, like a dead cow hanging from a tree, its head caught between two branches. A pickup trucks were seen lying upside down, while dozens of dead fish swept out of the water and began to rot and stink on the banks. Helicopters are still flying overhead looking for survivors or bodies while rescue teams in boats are riding up and down the river, and emergency officials are combing its banks. Little by little, debris like uprooted trees and ruined cars is being taken away. No Warning State emergency management officials had warned on Thursday, ahead of the July Fourth holiday, that parts of central Texas faced the possibility of heavy showers and flash floods based on National Weather Service Forecasts. But twice as much rain as was predicted ended up falling over two branches of the Guadalupe just upstream of the fork where they converge, sending all of that water racing into the single river channel where it slices through Kerrville, according to City Manager Dalton Rice.