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Texas woman describes harrowing escape from flooding

Texas woman describes harrowing escape from flooding

CNN8 hours ago
Amanda Sue Jones joins CNN's Erica Hill and shares details about how she and her family survived the HTR Campground flooding in Texas.
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Pamela Brown reports from Camp Mystic, where she went as a child
Pamela Brown reports from Camp Mystic, where she went as a child

CNN

time35 minutes ago

  • CNN

Pamela Brown reports from Camp Mystic, where she went as a child

Pamela Brown reports from Camp Mystic, where she went as a child CNN anchor Pamela Brown was a camper at Camp Mystic 30 years ago, so she knows firsthand that it has been 'a magical place' for generations of girls. Today, she is back there, covering the aftermath of the flood tragedy. 00:57 - Source: CNN Mangled debris shows force of Texas flash floods Barbed wire and mangled trees among the debris scattered for miles, search and rescue workers in Texas face the grueling, slow challenge of holding out hope for any survivors or remains following Friday's flash floods. CNN's Isabel Rosales is in Center Point to give a first-hand look at the challenges volunteers are facing. 00:59 - Source: CNN Group of friends search for survivors Search efforts are underway in Hunt, Texas, to find survivors outside of Camp Mystic. Brooks Holzhausen, with the volunteer group 300 Justice, spoke to CNN detailing the collaboration with state and local law enforcement to help bring missing people home. 01:05 - Source: CNN Timelapse video shows speed of floodwater rising in Texas A timelapse video captured on Friday shows how quickly floodwaters rose along the Llano River in Kingsland, Texas – a town about 95 miles northeast of Camp Mystic. The video, which was sped up, shows the water rush in and rise along the river in the span of 30 minutes. 00:31 - Source: CNN Man describes escaping Airbnb during Texas flash flooding Ricky Gonzalez and a dozen friends were staying at an Airbnb when one of them were awoken by their dog pawing at the door. When they opened the curtain, one of their vehicles was already being swept away. 01:16 - Source: CNN See flood aftermath at Camp Mystic in Texas Authorities are still racing to find victims in central Texas, including 27 people from Camp Mystic, a girls summer camp in Kerr County, where the Guadalupe River rose more than 20 feet in less than two hours during torrential rains that triggered flash flooding in parts of the state. 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Kerrville didn't have weather sirens used by other cities
Kerrville didn't have weather sirens used by other cities

Yahoo

timean hour ago

  • Yahoo

Kerrville didn't have weather sirens used by other cities

AUSTIN (KXAN) – At a Friday news conference, Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly said he 'can't answer' why camps weren't evacuated but acknowledged: 'We do not have a warning system.' 'We didn't know this flood was coming,' Kelly told reporters. 'Rest assured, no one knew this kind of flood was coming. We have floods all the time. This is the most dangerous river valley in the United States and we deal with floods on a regular basis. When it rains, we get water. We had no reason to believe that this was going to be anything like what's happened here. None whatsoever.' Nicole Wilson, 42, watched the news conference from her home in San Antonio and was 'blown away.' Wilson told KXAN two of her friends have daughters that were at Camp Mystic and one had a son at Camp La Junta. All three children are accounted for. One of the girl's cousins, however, is still missing, she said. 'Just not having those plans in place is crazy to think about,' she said. 'That they wouldn't have risk mitigation in place when you're surrounded by water.' Conflicting officials, social posts leave evacuation delay questions in Kerr County flooding While the National Weather Service issued flash flood warnings and the city of Kerrville's Facebook paged warned to 'move to higher ground immediately,' the young campers at Camp Mystic likely wouldn't have seen that since cell phones, smart watches, iPads and anything with Wi-Fi capability were considered 'unacceptable electronic devices' to bring and 'not allowed,' according to a recent list of instructions sent to parents. Camp Mystic is located less than 20 miles west of Kerrville in Hunt, which is in Kerr County. Wilson was born and raised in Kentucky, where she said outdoor weather sirens – primarily used for tornadoes – were common. On July 5, she started a online petition 'urgently' calling for Kerrville and Kerr County to implement an outdoor early warning siren system for life-threatening emergencies, like flooding. So far, she said she's received 'a lot of positive feedback on that.' 'The tragic events at Camp Mystic and the devastating flooding along the Guadalupe River that happened in July are stark reminders that severe weather can strike with little notice,' Wilson wrote. 'A well-placed siren system will provide critical extra minutes for families, schools, camps, businesses, and visitors to seek shelter and evacuate when needed. This is not just a wish – it is a necessary investment in public safety.' Indeed, outdoor weather alert systems are not required by any federal or state law. The choice is left up to local leaders. On Friday morning, less than 20 miles from Kerrville, emergency sirens blasted in the unincorporated Kendall County community of Comfort, according to a published report, signaling 'emergency conditions and a mandatory evacuation' as the Guadalupe River continued to rise. Sirens are typically activated by city or county officials, according to the NWS. 'I just think if they had five minutes [of warning time from a siren] longer, five to 10 minutes longer, and that's what those sirens give you …. and you know the counselors would have led them uphill …I don't believe we'd be in the scenario right now where we're searching for those girls,' said Wilson. Cities that use sirens, like San Marcos — which has 14 outdoor weather sirens to warn of floods, tornadoes and wildfires — have previously touted the outdoor warning system as a 'vital tool' for emergency preparedness. The sirens, called an Outdoor Warning System, are designed to quickly and loudly notify a community of threats to public safety, including severe weather. San Marcos notes its sirens emit unique sound patterns for different emergencies. Critics say they can be expensive, require regular maintenance, are primarily designed to be heard outdoors and aren't as effective as weather radios and mobile alerts. A single siren can cost an estimated $10,000 to $50,000 and multiple are sometimes needed. Austin doesn't have a city-wide outdoor weather siren system. In 2022, a city spokesperson told KXAN the fastest way to get information out is with 'the technology we have today' and there was a concern that sirens could 'cause confusion.' This past legislative session, lawmakers filed a bill that would have created a council to operate a grant program assisting local governments with acquiring emergency communications equipment. One of its tasks, if the bill had passed, would have been to develop a statewide strategic plan that included 'the use of outdoor warning sirens.' The council would have also been asked to 'develop and implement, as advisable, emergency alert systems and incorporate as necessary communication technologies into the emergency communications network of this state.' In 2018, Kerr County, along with the Upper Guadalupe River Authority, applied for a $1 million grant for a flood warning system. 'That application was not selected, okay. That's the bad news,' a commissioner said, according to Kerr County commissioner meeting minutes at the time. Two years later, in 2020, according to Kerr County meeting minutes, that same commissioner said: 'We've been trying to get a new flood warning system here.' The 2020 commissioner meeting is when Kerr County implemented IPAWS, or Integrated Public Alert & Warning System through FEMA, which is a free program offered through Kerr County's existing contract with CodeRed, a system it currently uses for mass emergency pre-recorded emergency telephone messages, according to Kerr County's website. The CodeRed system is also used in Kerrville with the caveat that it relies on White Pages data and residents should not 'assume their number is included.' As of 2023, Kerr County Commissioners' Court meeting minutes show the county was still discussing grant options for flood mitigation assistance to include research on engineering and infrastructure for flood prevention measures. In an interview with the New York Times, Kelly said one reason Kerr County doesn't have a flood warning system is due to the cost. 'Taxpayers won't pay for it,' Kelly is quoted as saying. Asked if residents might reconsider now, he responded: 'I don't know.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Children's camps were located in areas known to be at high risk of flooding
Children's camps were located in areas known to be at high risk of flooding

CNN

timean hour ago

  • CNN

Children's camps were located in areas known to be at high risk of flooding

Storms HurricanesFacebookTweetLink Follow The waterways in Texas Hill Country have carved paths over the centuries through the granite and limestone, shaping the rocky peaks and valleys that make the region so breathtaking. When too much rain falls for the ground to absorb, it runs downhill, pulled by gravity into streams, creeks and rivers. The rain fills the waterways beyond their banks, and the excess overflows in predictable patterns that follow the terrain. Governments and waterway managers know what will flood first and who will be threatened when a truly historic rain event takes place. Several of the camps along the Guadalupe River and its tributaries sustained damage early July 4. Many of them are in areas known to flood. The Federal Emergency Management Agency maintains a database of flood zones throughout the country. It maps the regulatory floodways — the places that will flood first and are most dangerous — and the areas that will flood in extreme events. The Guadalupe River flood was a 1-in-100-year event, meaning it has about a 1% chance of happening in any given year. Extreme flooding is happening more frequently as the world warms and the atmosphere is able to hold more moisture. Texas has already seen multiple dangerous flooding events this year, and the United States overall saw a record number of flash flood emergencies last year. More than an entire summer's worth of rain fell in some spots in central Texas in just a few hours early on the Fourth of July, quickly overwhelming dry soils and creating significant flash flooding. Central Texas is currently home to some of the worst drought in the United States and bone-dry soils flood very quickly. Camp Mystic is a nondenominational Christian summer camp for girls in western Kerr County. The camp is located at a dangerous confluence of the South Fork Guadalupe River and Cypress Creek, where flood waters converged. Camp Mystic has two sites, both of which overlap with either the floodway or areas the federal government has determined have a 1% or 0.2% annual chance of flooding. Officials have not shared how many of the Camp Mystic girls perished in the floods. At least 10 girls and one counselor remain missing as of Sunday evening. Ten minutes north on the South Fork is Camp La Junta, a boys camp. Some of Camp La Junta's property also coincides with areas known to flood, though several of its buildings are located in the lower-risk zone, or outside the flood zones entirely. Wyndham Etheridge, a 14-year-old at Camp La Junta in Hunt, Texas, told CNN's Fredricka Whitfield he woke up to people from all over the camp coming to 'seek refuge' at his cabin. They stayed there, fearing the strong floodwaters could sweep them away. As the water rose, they climbed into the loft of their cabin to escape, but it wasn't safe, Etheridge said. 'So at some point we just decided … we could go to bed for a little bit, but then we woke up again to more water,' he said. Etheridge's parents were among the lucky who received word that their child was safe and could be picked up. 'All those boys were pretty traumatized,' said Amy Etheridge, Wyndham's mother. Everyone at Camp La Junta has been safe and accounted for, the camp announced Friday.

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