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Texas death toll reaches 134 as new flash flood watch issued

Texas death toll reaches 134 as new flash flood watch issued

The Guardiana day ago
At least 134 people have now been confirmed to have died during the Texas Hill Country flooding on 4 July, according to an ABC News report.
Crews are continuing to search for the 101 people still missing.
Heavy rains forced searchers to pause their efforts over the weekend, and the National Weather Service on Tuesday again issued a flash flood watch in the area.
The agency reported that the area could see rainfall of 1-2in with isolated amounts up to 4in possible.
'When alerted to a flash flood, immediately get to higher ground, and NEVER enter flood waters in a vehicle or by foot,' the weather service stated.
The disaster occurred when heavy rainfall in central Texas, spurred in part by remnants of Tropical Storm Barry, caused the Guadalupe River to rise 26ft (8 meters) in 45 minutes. Most of the deaths occurred in Kerr county, which is located about 90 miles (145km) north-west of San Antonio and includes Camp Mystic, where 27 children and counselors died.
Many people were also visiting the area for an Independence Day concert and fireworks.
'We don't know how many came, we don't know where they are, we don't know how many we lost,' the Kerr county judge, Rob Kelly, told USA Today. 'We've heard accounts of trailer after trailer after trailer being swept into the river with families in [them]. Can't find trailers.'
At a Kerr county commissioners' court meeting on Monday, Commissioner Rich Paces said he had been 'getting death threats' in the midst of the cleanup efforts.
'Can you imagine? And people cursing us for decisions that we never had a chance to make and they're just playing a blame game,' he said.
Another Kerr county commissioner, Jeff Holt, told HuffPost on Tuesday that the state's department of public safety (DPS) was handling the threats and did not offer further comment.
The alleged threats come on the heels of many speaking out against Texas officials to question whether more could have been done to alert people of the floods.
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