Search for woman who texted 'we're being washed away' in Texas flood
Triggering one of many frantic search efforts, Bandon pleaded for help from a house along the river, according to Louis Deppe, leader of a group of volunteers trying to help the Bandon family find their daughter.
Torrential rains starting the night before the Independence Day holiday caused the river to rise the height of a two-story building in less than hour, flooding parts of Kerr County, including several children's camps, tearing down trees and tossing cars as if they were toys.
The death toll as of Sunday afternoon was at least 78, with more casualties expected.
Bandon and three friends had gone to a country house to spend the July 4 holiday together.
It rained all Thursday night into Friday morning, when disaster struck.
"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 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 up by so much debris. Not one person could see it, so the more eyes, the better," he added.
The river is returning to normal now but there is utter destruction everywhere on its banks, like a dead cow hanging from a tree, its head caught between two branches.
Nearby a pickup truck lies upside down and around it dozens of dead fish swept out of the water are beginning to rot and stink.
Helicopters fly overhead looking for survivors or bodies while rescue teams in boats ride up and down the river and emergency officials comb its banks.
Little by little, debris like uprooted trees and ruined cars is being taken away.
- Finding bodies -
Tina Hambly, 55, the mother of Joyce Bandon's best friend and roommate, walks around with a kayak oar poking at branches and other debris, hoping to find something or someone.
"We're doing a seven-mile stretch, and there's seven teams and we're doing a mile apiece, so just kind of dividing and conquering, trying to find any four of them or anyone," Hambly told AFP.
"But, you know, we are friends and families and frankly, some strangers have shown up," she added.
In the town of Hunt, one of the worst hit areas, a summer gathering for children called Camp Mystic initially reported dozens of those kids missing in the flooding. The figure now stands at 11 plus a counselor.
Toys, clothing, towels and other belongings lie strewn around camp cabins full of mud.
The volunteers looking for Bandon have found some bodies -- two early on Saturday morning and then another stuck in debris up in a tree. "And they did let me know that she was one of the Camp Mystic girls that went missing," said Justin Morales, 36, part of the search team.
"We're happy to give a family closure," he said. "That's why we're out here."
mav/sla
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Forbes
an hour ago
- Forbes
Canadian Wildfire Smoke: New York City Faces Air Quality Advisory for Second Day in a Row
New York City and other parts of the Northeast were placed under air quality alerts for the second day in a row as smoke from the wildfires burning in Canada again brings hazardous conditions to the region. New York City was placed under an air quality health advisory over the weekend. AFP via Getty Images New York City, Long Island and the Hudson Valley will all experience air quality within the 101-150 range on the air quality index Sunday, the state's Department of Environmental Conservation forecasted—meaning the air could contain fine particles and could be 'unhealthy for sensitive groups.' Sensitive groups include very young children and adults with preexisting conditions like asthma and heart disease, the New York State Department of Health said, recommending these individuals limit 'strenuous outdoor physical activity.' The state issued an Air Quality Health Advisory on Saturday afternoon as smoke began blanketing the region, and extended the warning through Sunday evening at 11:59 p.m. EDT. Parts of New Jersey, New England and Quebec could also experience similar air quality conditions, according to online tracker IQAir. 120. That was the air quality reading for New York City as of around 11 a.m. EDT on Sunday morning—the eighth worst among major cities in the world, according to IQAir, and the worst in North America. Key Background The smoke blanketing the Northeast over the weekend is primarily the result of massive wildfires burning in Canada. Over 3,300 have burned over 5.6 million hectares across Canada year-to-date, according to the Canadian Interagency Fire Centre's most recent report. Canada has suffered from severe wildfires since a record-breaking 2023 wildfire season, when fires burning in Quebec blanketed New York City in an orange haze. Earlier this month, a group of Republican members of Congress from Wisconsin and Minnesota wrote to Ambassador Kirsten Hillman, Canada's ambassador to the U.S., asking the country for more information about how it planned to combat the fires and implying a 'lack of active forest management' played a role in exacerbating the situation. Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew, the leader of the Canadian province where wildfires forced thousands to evacuate and trapped and killed two people in a rural area in May, criticized the group as 'ambulance chasers' and challenged them to visit and support the American firefighters involved in battling the blazes on the Canadian side of the border. The air quality readings in New York this weekend are just a fraction of what was recorded in 2023, when readings spiked above 400—a level considered hazardous for the entire population.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Michigan among states that could glimpse northern lights. See map
Much of Michigan could see the northern lights on July 26, according to NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) forecast. The northern lights, also known as the aurora borealis, may be visible in as many as 14 northern states tonight, according to NOAA's SWPC dashboard. According to NOAA, "view lines" Michiganders as far south as Grand Rapids, Lansing and Port Huron may be able to catch a glimpse of the shimmering lights in the night sky to the north. The lights could be overhead for people in parts of the Upper Peninsula. NOAA says a G1 geomagnetic storm, a worldwide disturbance of the Earth's magnetic field, is expected to produce a Kp rating of 5. Kp is an index used to indicate the severity of the global magnetic disturbances in near-Earth space, NOAA said. Kp ratings increase from zero to 9+. NOAA is predicting moderate and minor geomagnetic storm impacts. Some high latitude electrical systems could suffer damage, radios could be affected among other issues. When could the northern lights be visible? The northern lights could be visible in Michigan Saturday, July 26, according to SPWC. What are the northern lights? The northern lights, or aurora borealis, are waves of light created when the solar wind strikes the atmosphere, creating a display of moving lights in the night sky. Which states could see the northern lights? The NOAA says the red "view line" marks the southernmost extent where aurora might be seen on the northern horizon. While more than a dozen states have a chance to see the northern lights on July 26, Alaska has the greatest chance to see the spectacle, followed by parts of the following states: Idaho Michigan Washington Montana Wyoming North Dakota South Dakota Minnesota Wisconsin New York Vermont New Hampshire Maine Why do the northern lights have different colors? The color of the aurora depends on which gas is being excited by the electrons and on how much energy is being exchanged, NASA said. Oxygen emits either a greenish-yellow light (the most familiar color of the aurora) or a red light; nitrogen generally gives off a blue light. The oxygen and nitrogen molecules also emit ultraviolet light, which can only be detected by special cameras on satellites. This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Northern lights forecast: Michigan, other states could see aurora borealis July 26 Solve the daily Crossword
CBS News
2 hours ago
- CBS News
Extreme heat, severe storm potential prompt NEXT Weather Alert for Minnesota
Sunday is a NEXT Weather Alert day for two reasons: extreme heat and the potential for severe weather. An extreme heat warning is in effect for much of southern and central Minnesota and parts of western Wisconsin from noon until 9 p.m. Feels-like temperatures are expected to be around 100 to 105 degrees. A heat advisory is in effect elsewhere, also from noon to 9 p.m. Sunday. If you have to be outside on Sunday, take lots of breaks inside or in the shade. Regardless of your outside exposure, drink more water than you usually do. Most of Minnesota, including the Twin Cities, has a slight risk (2 out of 5) for severe weather in the evening to overnight hours on Sunday. The biggest threat is large hail. Tornadoes cannot be ruled out as a possibility. The heat will continue into Monday with highs in the 90s, but the humidity won't be as bad. Monday night into Tuesday morning, the Twin Cities metro could see more than 2 inches of rain. Parts of eastern, southeastern and central Minnesota could see as much as 3 to 4 inches of rain. Things calm down on Tuesday, as the rest of the week looks seasonal with highs around 80.
