Latest news with #McComb
USA Today
12-07-2025
- General
- USA Today
A flood killed his entire family in 2015. Now he has joined the search in Texas.
Jonathan McComb was the sole family member to survive similar floods in 2015. Since then, he has found a calling searching for others after deadly natural disasters. KERRVILLE, Texas – For nearly a week, Jonathan McComb has climbed into inflatable Zodiac rafts or hiked along the flood-scarred banks of the Guadalupe River, poking through brambles and uprooted trees, looking for victims. He works from sunrise to sundown. It's relentless, tedious, physically demanding work. And, as search and rescue turns to recovery, it can be soul-wrenching. McComb is one of hundreds of volunteers who have descended onto Kerr County in the wake of the deadly Independence Day floods here to help search for victims. But the task carries extra weight for McComb: He was the only one of his family to survive similar floods in 2015 in Wimberley, Texas, 80 miles east of Kerrville. Those floods destroyed about 400 homes and killed 13 people, including McComb's wife and two children. They were swept from his grasp as the house they were in was pushed along the Blanco River and broke apart against a bridge. On the morning of July 7, McComb, 45, gathered with about 20 members of TEXSAR, a search and rescue volunteer group based in Central Texas. On the banks of the Guadalupe – no longer destructive but still brown and swollen – the members discussed river currents and reminded one another to be careful with fallen branches and trees. As of that morning, the missing included at least 10 children attending a nearby Christian camp for girls. Live updates: Texas flooding death toll rises to 90; 10 campers missing Many of the volunteers were lending their expertise in search and rescue to a stricken community. For McComb, it was the fulfillment of a pact he struck with God while clinging to life in the raging Blanco River a decade ago. 'This one hits a little bit more at home,' McComb said in an interview with USA TODAY. 'I can see the hurt and the pain in the families. I know what they're going through and what they're feeling and what they're going to feel.' 'The magnitude of this is in its own category' Volunteers have streamed to Kerr County in the wake of the floods, some pulling skiffs on trailers behind trucks or with canoes strapped to the roofs of their SUVs. Authorities have asked volunteers to connect with a law enforcement agency before helping. TEXSAR alone has deployed 50 volunteers and six swift-water rescue boats, spokesperson Shannon Smith said. Over the years, TEXSAR teams have helped in hundreds of missions, from search and rescue in the wake of Hurricane Harvey in southeast Texas to rescuing lost hikers in the Guadalupe Mountains in West Texas. But few have compared to this disaster, Smith said. 'The magnitude of this is in its own category,' she said. At least 100 people have died in flooding across Texas since July 4, authorities say. The worst of the flooding occurred here in Kerr County, but people have died in Travis, Burnet, Kendall, Tom Green and Williamson counties. The toll included at least 27 children and counselors from a beloved all-girls summer camp, the camp said in a statement, as a frantic search for those still missing entered its fourth day. "Our hearts are broken alongside our families that are enduring this unimaginable tragedy," the private Christian camp, Camp Mystic, said in a statement on its website July 7. "We are praying for them constantly." About 700 children were at the camp when relentless rain caused the nearby Guadalupe River to surge more than 26 feet in less than an hour, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said. Photos taken at the scene show a building where some of the children slept with broken windows and a blown-out wall. Among the mud-covered debris were pink blankets and stuffed animals. 'I'll tell your story and help others' The images have reawakened painful memories for McComb. On Memorial Day weekend 2015, McComb, his wife, Laura, their son Andrew, 6, and daughter, Leighton, 4, were vacationing at a riverfront home in Wimberley with another family when the floods hit. The raging waters pushed the home off its foundation and sent it rushing down the Blanco River. The home smashed into a bridge and ripped apart, plunging people into the river. McComb witnessed his family swept away by the angry current as they slipped from his grasp, he said. He resigned to go as well and slipped under the waves. But something bumped his head and jolted him awake. He called on God. 'I said, 'All right, I'm going to get out of here, and I'll tell your story and help others,'' McComb remembered. About 11 miles downriver, McComb finally climbed out, scaled a steep cliff and walked to safety. He was the only one of the nine people in the home that night to survive. Leighton's body was never recovered, he said. While recovering in the hospital, he learned that TEXSAR volunteers were looking for his family. He vowed to join the group as soon as he could. Later that year, he did. McComb has assisted in six missions with the group, including other weather events and helping find missing people. He has since remarried and has a 5-year-old daughter, Scarlett. He hugged her a little tighter before heading off to Kerr County. He arrived in Kerrville on the night of July 4 as the Guadalupe still roiled, joining search and rescue teams on Zodiac rafts. It has been a struggle, he said, to stay focused on the search while not letting his feelings distract him. 'It's a tug of war,' McComb said. 'I'm here to help. But knowing we weren't able to recover my daughter 10 years ago ... I know what that feels like. I want to do what I can to help.' He climbed into a pickup with his team and rode off to a stretch of uprooted trees and tangled debris downriver. There were more people to find. How to volunteer Where to donate Aid groups, nonprofits and other organizations are accepting donations to help survivors and assist in the recovery. The Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country started the Kerr County Flood Relief Fund, which will provide aid to vetted organizations in Hunt, Ingram, Kerrville, Center Point and other areas. Crowdfunding website GoFundMe has an updated page for verified fundraisers connected to flood victims and their families. Other organizations accepting donations include the World Central Kitchen and The Salvation Army, which is distributing supplies and has set up a mobile kitchen in the disaster area.
Yahoo
08-07-2025
- General
- Yahoo
People are making a difference among the tragedy of the central Texas floods
Devastating floods hit multiple counties in central Texas over the Fourth of July weekend, killing over 100 people with more still missing. But among the devastation and tragedy there have been moments of hope as residents have been saved and others have jumped in to help with clean-up and search and rescue operations. Here are three stories of people who have worked to help save those affected by the floods. Scott Ruskan is a 26-year-old rescue swimmer with the U.S. Coast Guard who helped rescue around 165 people during his first mission with the Coast Guard, per CBS. On Friday, Ruskan and his team were flown from Corpus Christi, Texas, to Camp Mystic in Kerr County which had been devastated by flooding. There were hundreds of people trapped at Camp Mystic, but the rest of the team was called to a different more dangerous area. 'We decided the best course of action was to leave me there,' Ruskan said, according to CBS. Over the course of three hours, Ruskan was the only rescuer in the area and he spent the time setting up triage and comforting many girls at the camp. He said he pushed aside any fear that he had to focus on those he needed to help. 'They're having probably the worst day of their life. They're missing friends. They're missing loved ones,' he said, per CNN. 'They don't know where they are. Some of them may be unaccounted for. Some of them may be somewhere else.' Eventually, Texas Air National Guard aircraft arrived at the area and Ruskan was able to lead the children in groups of 10 to 15 to the aircraft. He focused on getting the youngest children out first and even carried some of them. In the end, Ruskan helped rescue around 165 campers, per CNN. Ten years ago, Jonathan McComb lost his wife and two children in floods in Wimberley, Texas, similar to the tragedy that struck this year. 'This one hits a little bit more at home,' McComb said, according to USA Today. 'I can see the hurt and the pain in the families. I know what they're going through and what they're feeling and what they're going to feel.' In 2015, McComb and his family were vacationing in Wimberley when waters from the swelling Blanco River carried the home they were staying in downstream. McComb was the sole survivor of his family after his wife and children were swept from his grasp. McComb has spent the last four days as a volunteer with TEXSAR working to clear the mountains of debris that cover parts of Kerr County following this year's devastating floods, according to NBC DFW. 'I think it's good for people to see that there's hope, through tragedy. That life can go on, and I'm here to help do whatever I can for those people. Because they're going through the worst part of their lives right now, and I did that. I know exactly how they feel,' he said, per NBC DFW. David Chambers received a phone call on Friday telling him that the Guadalupe river was rising and that floods were coming. He quickly drove to his RV park in Center Point to evacuate the guests he had staying there. When he arrived the water was starting to spill over the banks of the river, per USA Today. As the heavy rain fell on him, Chambers and one of his employees knocked on all the doors of his RV resort, the Guadalupe Keys Resort, until all 15 people who had rented units were evacuated. 'You got to get out!' he yelled as the evacuation took place. Just minutes later, the park was completely covered by water and RVs were being flipped over and moved, some of them smashing into trees and other being pushed miles downstream. Chambers received the warning about the floods just around 30 minutes before water filled the RV park, according to USA Today.
New York Post
08-07-2025
- General
- New York Post
Texan who lost entire family in 2015 flood now helping latest search for victims: ‘This one hits home'
A widower who lost his wife and two children in a Texas flood 10 years ago has joined the harrowing search for those still missing in the latest disaster that has killed more than 100 people. Jonathan McComb, 45, lost his wife, Laura, and their two children — son Andrew, 6, and daughter Leighton, 4 — when a vacation home they were staying in for Memorial Day weekend in 2015 was swept into the raging Blanco River in a flood that killed 13 people. He arrived Friday in Kerrville — about 80 miles from where he lost his own family — as one of hundreds of Texas Search and Rescue [TEXSAR] volunteers scouring for current victims near the Guadalupe River, just as the group had searched for his 10 years earlier. 4 Jonathan McComb, who lost his wife and two children in a 2015 flood, helped search for victims in Kerr County this weekend. Rick Jervis / USA TODAY / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images 'This one hits a little bit more at home,' McComb told USA TODAY while helping in the area where more than a hundred are confirmed dead and many others remain missing. 'I can see the hurt and the pain in the families. I know what they're going through and what they're feeling and what they're going to feel,' he said of overwhelmed relatives there. McComb arrived hours after flash floods caused the Guadalupe River to rise more than 26 feet in less than an hour early Friday morning, devastating the region. The dead include at least 27 campers and counselors from all-girls Christian summer camp Camp Mystic Hunt, where 10 girls remain missing. 4 McComb lost his wife Laura, son Andrew and daughter Leighton when their vacation home fell into the Blanco River. Courtesy Heather Marks McComb had been the only survivor out of nine people staying in a vacation home in Wimberley in 2015 when floods destroyed more than 400 homes. The home they were in crumbled when it smashed into a bridge, sending the family into the waters — with the dad only able to watch helplessly as his wife and kids were swept to their deaths. His daughter's body was never found. Giving up hope, McComb had allowed himself to be taken away by the current, before he came to after bumping his head some 11 miles downriver, he said. 4 McComb, 45, gathered with about 20 members of TEXSAR, to search the banks of the Guadalupe River. TEXSAR 4 A raging Guadalupe River leaves fallen trees and debris in its wake after Friday's devastating flash floods. AP He described this weekend's emotional toll as an internal 'tug of war' — but knows the effort is worth it. 'I'm here to help. But knowing we weren't able to recover my daughter 10 years ago and I know what that feels like. I want to do what I can to help,' he told USA Today. McComb — who has since remarried and has a 5-year-old daughter, Scarlett — joined TEXSAR at the end of 2015 after learning how volunteers searched for his own family. He has since been on six search operations with the group.
USA Today
07-07-2025
- General
- USA Today
A flood killed his entire family in 2015. Now, he's joined search efforts in Texas.
Jonathan McComb was the sole family member to survive similar floods in 2015. Since then, he has found a calling searching for others after deadly natural disasters. KERRVILLE, Texas – For the past four days, Jonathan McComb has climbed into inflatable Zodiac rafts or hiked along the flood-scarred banks of the Guadalupe River, poking through brambles and uprooted trees, looking for victims. He works from sunrise to sundown. It's relentless, tedious, physically demanding work. And, as search-and-rescue turns to recovery, occasionally soul-wrenching as well. McComb is one of hundreds of volunteers who have descended onto Kerr County in the wake of the deadly Independence Day floods here to help search for victims. But the task carries extra weight for McComb: He was the sole family member to survive similar floods in 2015 in Wimberley, Texas, 80 miles east of Kerrville. Those floods destroyed some 400 homes and killed 13 people, including McComb's wife and two children. They were swept from his grasp as the house they were in was pushed along the Blanco River and broke apart against a bridge. On the morning of July 7, McComb, 45, gathered with about 20 members of TEXSAR, a search-and-rescue volunteer group based in Central Texas. On the banks of the Guadalupe – no longer destructive but still brown and swollen – the members discussed river currents and reminded one another to be careful with fallen branches and trees. As of that morning, the missing included at least 10 children attending a nearby Christian camp for girls. Live updates: Texas flooding death toll rises to 90; 10 campers missing Many of the volunteers were lending their expertise in search and rescue to a stricken community. For McComb, it was the fulfillment of a pact he struck with God while clinging to life in the raging Blanco River a decade ago. 'This one hits a little bit more at home,' McComb said in an interview with USA TODAY. 'I can see the hurt and the pain in the families. I know what they're going through and what they're feeling and what they're going to feel.' 'The magnitude of this is in its own category' Volunteers have streamed to Kerr County in the wake of the floods, some pulling skiffs on trailers behind trucks or with canoes strapped to the roofs of their SUVs. Authorities have asked volunteers to connect with a law enforcement agency before helping. TEXSAR alone has deployed 50 volunteers and six swift water rescue boats to the effort, spokesperson Shannon Smith said. Over the years, TEXSAR teams have helped in hundreds of missions, from search and rescue in the wake of Hurricane Harvey in southeast Texas to rescuing lost hikers in the Guadalupe Mountains in West Texas. But few have compared to this disaster, Smith said. 'The magnitude of this is in its own category,' she said. At least 90 people have died in flooding across Texas since July 4, officials said. The worst of the flooding occurred here in Kerr County, but fatalities have also been recorded in Travis, Burnet, Kendall, Tom Green and Williamson counties. The death toll included at least 27 children and counselors from a beloved all-girls summer camp, the camp said in a statement, as a frantic search for those still missing entered its fourth day. "Our hearts are broken alongside our families that are enduring this unimaginable tragedy," the private Christian camp, Camp Mystic, said in a July 7 statement on its website. "We are praying for them constantly." There were about 700 children at the camp when relentless rain caused the nearby Guadalupe River to surge over 26 feet in less than an hour, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said. Photos taken at the scene show a building where some of the children slept with broken windows and a blown-out wall. Among the mud-covered debris were pink blankets and stuffed animals. 'I'll tell your story and help others' The images have reawakened painful memories for McComb. On Memorial Day weekend 2015, McComb, his wife, Laura, their son Andrew, 6, and daughter Leighton, 4, were vacationing at a riverfront home in Wimberley with another family when the floods hit, pushing the home off its foundation and sending it rushing down the Blanco River. The home smashed into a bridge and began ripping apart, sending family members into the raging river. McComb witnessed his family swept away by the angry current, as they slipped from his grasp, he said. He resigned to go as well and slipped under the waves. But something bumped his head, startling him awake. He called on God. 'I said, 'All right, I'm going to get out of here and I'll tell your story and help others,'' McComb remembered. Around 11 miles downriver, McComb finally climbed out, scaled a steep cliff and walked to safety. He was the only one of the nine people in the home that night to survive. Leighton's body was never recovered, he said. While recovering in the hospital, he learned that TEXSAR volunteers were looking for his family. He vowed to join the group as soon as he could. Later that year, he did. McComb has assisted in six missions with the group, including other weather events and helping to find missing persons. He has since remarried and now has a 5-year-old daughter, Scarlett. He hugged her a little tighter before heading off to Kerr County. He arrived in Kerrville on the night of July 4, as the Guadalupe still roiled, joining search-and-rescue teams on Zodiac rafts. It's been a struggle, he said, to stay focused on the search while not letting familiar feelings distract him. 'It's a tug of war,' McComb said. 'I'm here to help. But knowing we weren't able to recover my daughter 10 years ago and I know what that feels like. I want to do what I can to help.' He climbed into a pickup truck with his team and rode off to a stretch of uprooted trees and tangled debris downriver. There were more victims to find. How to volunteer At a news conference, Kerrville City Manager Dalton Rice asked that volunteers contact the Salvation Army Kerrville at 830-465-4797, or in-person at 855 Hays St. in Kerrville. He also asked that private drone operators desist from flying in the disaster area. Where to donate A variety of aid groups, nonprofits and other organizations are accepting donations to help victims and assist in the recovery effort. The Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country started a Kerr County Flood Relief Fund, which will provide aid to vetted organizations in Hunt, Ingram, Kerrville, Center Point and other areas. Crowdfunding website GoFundMe has an updated page for verified fundraisers connected to flood victims and their families. Other organizations accepting donations include World Central Kitchen and the Salvation Army, which is distributing supplies and has set up a mobile kitchen in the disaster area. Reach Jervis at: rjervis@ or follow him on X: @MrRJervis.
Irish Daily Mirror
29-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Sean McComb eyes potential all-Irish fight after winning on return to the ring
Sean McComb is open to an all-Irish showdown with recently crowned EBU European super lightweight champion Pierce O'Leary. The Belfast southpaw made a winning return to action as he fought for the first time in 14 months on Saturday night, beating Argentina's Alexis Nahuel Torres via decision. McComb hadn't been seen in action since suffering the second defeat of his career very controversially against Arnold Barboza Jr in April of last year, but was very pleased with his performance against Torres in Hull, with referee Mark Lyson scoring the bout 60-54 in his favour. In a one-sided contest, McComb outboxed his opponent from the off and hurt his eye in the fourth round as the now 13-12-1 fighter struggled with the 32-year-old's silky skills. Much bigger challenges now lie ahead for 'The Public Nuisance', who revealed Dublin's O'Leary is one name he is interested in facing next. "We all know I want a rematch with Barboza. We're not going to get it so we'll go the UK route," said McComb. "We have all the top fighters in the UK. We've got Dalton Smith, Adam Azim, Pierce O'Leary... anyone else around the domestic scene wants it, European wants it, anyone wants it I'm here. I just want to fight the best names in the hat and they're the best names in the hat." McComb's trainer Pete Taylor commented: "Nobody wants to fight Sean. He's a nightmare for anybody in the world and everybody's avoiding him after the Barboza fight. "It would have been better off really for us if he got knocked out because people would fight him. Now everybody knows where he belongs because we were robbed. We were robbed that day against BarboZa so this could have started a great journey for us." Taylor added: "We'll fight anybody and you know, boxers say that 'I'll fight anybody', we actually will fight anybody. Anybody that's out there wants to take the chance, we're there."
