Latest news with #TexasNationalGuard
Yahoo
16-07-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
As Death Toll Rises From Floods, Texas Agriculture Commissioner Calls For Prayer And Preparedness
More than 110 lives have been lost and over 160 remain missing in the wake of the catastrophic flash floods that hit the Texas Hill Country on July 4. What was meant to be a weekend of celebration turned into a nightmare for hundreds of families, many of whom were Texans simply enjoying time outdoors in one of the state's most treasured natural areas. Gov. Greg Abbott confirmed Sunday night that around 59 of the fatalities occurred in and around Camp Mystic in Kerrville, where the Guadalupe River overtook low-lying areas during a sudden and deadly surge. Abbott has since mobilized more than 1,750 personnel, nearly 1,000 vehicles, and over 20 state agencies to help manage the areas around Central Texas, the Hill Country, Big Country, and Concho Valley regions, as previously reported by The Dallas Express. Across Central Texas, other political leaders have vowed to support the victims and reconstruction efforts. 'I pledge that my agency is doing everything possible to support both our state and federal partners in this crisis, as well as the communities that have been impacted,' said Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller in a press release. 'The loss is unimaginable. We also ask all Texans to join us in prayer. There is still more work to be done, and together, we can continue to support our fellow Texans.' As of Sunday, more than 850 Texans had been rescued from floodwaters, including over 500 by the Texas National Guard. Coast Guard rescue swimmer Petty Officer Scott Ruskin made headlines for heroically rescuing 165 people, a remarkable feat for a single individual, as previously reported by DX. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem called Ruskin 'an American hero' and 'the embodiment of USCG valor.' The Trump administration has already approved a major disaster declaration, fast-tracking FEMA aid to the area, in what is now the largest statewide search and rescue operation since Hurricane Harvey. But as rescue teams continue their work, the pain of what's been lost is only beginning to settle in. Abbott, visibly emotional after visiting Camp Mystic, described the scene as 'horrific.' He also spoke on the ongoing recovery efforts for all, especially the children, and pledged to try to bring closure to the many grieving families. In another statement, Miller echoed that sentiment, saying, 'My prayers go out to the families in Kerrville and across the Hill Country who are dealing with the devastation from these deadly floods. We've already seen tragic loss of life, and it's a heartbreaking reminder that catastrophic flash floods can strike fast and without much warning.' Miller, a longtime rancher himself, urged those living and working near the impacted areas to remain cautious and vigilant. 'Folks, please don't take chances. Stay alert, follow local emergency warnings, and do not drive through flooded roads. Farmers and ranchers should take steps now to protect livestock and property. Move animals to higher ground, secure your equipment, and be ready. Preparation saves lives, both human and animal. Keep our rescuers and first responders in your prayers as they work around the clock to keep Texans safe. Let's stay safe and watch out for one another,' he added.
Yahoo
16-07-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Texas National Guard continues flood response with Czech team joining effort
Kerrville, Texas — With about 100 people still missing after devastating floods, the Texas National Guard and local officials leading recovery efforts received additional international support this week when a specialized detachment from the Czech Republic arrived ready to help. Sixteen civilians and four cadaver dogs from a Czech search and rescue team landed Sunday in Texas on a U.S. military flight from Ramstein Air Base in Germany. National Guard Bureau Chief General Steve Nordhaus coordinated the team's arrival and met the team leads in person on Tuesday while he was visiting Kerrville, Texas, for updates on response efforts. "Thanks for being here, Texas and the Czech Republic were partners right from the beginning in 1993 and what just an amazing partnership," Nordhaus told the team leads at the Kerrville-Kerr County Airport. The Texas and Nebraska National Guard have since 1993 shared a military relationship with the Czech Republic as part of the National Guard Bureau's State Partnership Program that pairs states with countries to train together. There are over 100 partnerships with about 115 countries around the world, according to the National Guard, and the one with the Czech Republic was one of the first after the initiative began in 1991. The Czechs providing support in the wake of floods in Texas follows assistance the Texas National Guard gave last year when the Czech Republic experienced severe flooding. When a flood hit Ostrava in the Czech Republic in September 2024, a Texas Air National Guard unit training in Europe diverted an MQ-9 Reaper drone to Ostrava to provide aerial assessments for recovery efforts. In Texas, about 230 members of the Texas National Guard are currently supporting response efforts. According to the Texas National Guard, members of the guard rescued over 500 people in the initial 24 hours after the flooding began. About 360 of those were evacuated using UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters. During a Black Hawk flight over the Guadalupe River Tuesday, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott pointed out to Nordhaus flood-impacted areas, explaining where the water rose at a terrifying speed — prompting urgent evacuations — and emphasizing how intensive the search will remain for the roughly 100 people still unaccounted for. After the flight, both Abbott and Nordhaus spoke to members of the Guard who have assisted in rescue and recovery efforts since the floods began on July 4. One of the air rescues came on July 4 when two Guard helicopters evacuated 130 children from Camp Mystic, a summer camp severely impacted by floods that led to the deaths of at least 27 campers and counselors. The 130 rescued the day of the flood by the guard were evacuated from Camp Mystic and taken to higher ground, according to Captain Connor Garrison, who led one of the aircraft and recounted the mission to Nordhaus and Abbott. "I appreciate you, I couldn't be prouder," Abbott told Garrison and other members of the Guard. The Texas National Guard is receiving support from other states like Arkansas, Arizona and North Dakota, which are providing additional personnel or equipment. For instance, North Dakota has sent down one of its own MQ-9 Reaper drones to help survey debris scattered along the still swollen Guadalupe River. Mike Johnson breaks from Trump, calls on DOJ to release Epstein files Trump says Powell is "terrible" for not lowering interest rates, denies plans to fire him Apps help undocumented people avoid immigration agents and ICE raids
CBS News
16-07-2025
- Climate
- CBS News
Texas National Guard continues flood response with Czech team joining effort
Kerrville, Texas – With about 100 people still missing after devastating floods, the Texas National Guard and local officials leading recovery efforts received additional international support this week when a specialized detachment from the Czech Republic arrived ready to help. Sixteen civilians and four cadaver dogs from a Czech search and rescue team landed Sunday in Texas on a U.S. military flight from Ramstein Air Base in Germany. National Guard Bureau Chief General Steve Nordhaus coordinated the team's arrival and met the team leads in person on Tuesday while he was visiting Kerrville, Texas, for updates on response efforts. "Thanks for being here, Texas and the Czech Republic were partners right from the beginning in 1993 and what just an amazing partnership," Nordhaus told the team leads at the Kerrville-Kerr County Airport. The Texas and Nebraska National Guard have since 1993 shared a military relationship with the Czech Republic as part of the National Guard Bureau's State Partnership Program that pairs states with countries to train together. There are over 100 partnerships with about 115 countries around the world, according to the National Guard, and the one with the Czech Republic was one of the first after the initiative began in 1991. The Czechs providing support in the wake of floods in Texas follows assistance the Texas National Guard gave last year when the Czech Republic experienced severe flooding. When a flood hit Ostrava in the Czech Republic in September 2024, a Texas Air National Guard unit training in Europe diverted an MQ-9 Reaper drone to Ostrava to provide aerial assessments for recovery efforts. In Texas, about 230 members of the Texas National Guard are currently supporting response efforts. According to the Texas National Guard, members of the guard rescued over 500 people in the initial 24 hours after the flooding began. About 360 of those were evacuated using UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters. During a Black Hawk flight over the Guadalupe River Tuesday, Texas Governor Greg Abbott pointed out to Nordhaus flood-impacted areas, explaining where the water rose at a terrifying speed – prompting urgent evacuations – and emphasizing how intensive the search will remain for the roughly 100 people still unaccounted for. After the flight, both Abbott and Nordhaus spoke to members of the Guard who have assisted in rescue and recovery efforts since the floods began on July 4. One of the air rescues came on July 4 when two Guard helicopters evacuated 130 children from Camp Mystic, a summer camp severely impacted by floods that led to the deaths of at least 27 campers and counselors. The 130 rescued the day of the flood by the guard were evacuated from Camp Mystic and taken to higher ground, according to Captain Connor Garrison, who led one of the aircraft and recounted the mission to Nordhaus and Abbott. "I appreciate you, I couldn't be prouder," Abbott told Garrison and other members of the Guard. The Texas National Guard is receiving support from other states like Arkansas, Arizona and North Dakota, which are providing additional personnel or equipment. For instance, North Dakota has sent down one of its own MQ-9 Reaper drones to help survey debris scattered along the still swollen Guadalupe River.
Yahoo
11-07-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Days after Texas floods, at least 150 people are still missing in one county
At least 150 people are still missing in a single Texas county five days after deadly and devastating flash floods hit parts of the state, state officials said, as hope fades for survivors to be found. The missing in the hard-hit Kerr County include five campers and a counsellor from Camp Mystic, a Christian all-girls summer camp located on the banks of the Guadalupe River. At least 119 people have died in the disaster, according to the latest county-by-county tolls. Authorities confirmed 95 were in the Kerrville area. Texas is not alone. Neighbouring New Mexico saw a flash flood emergency on Tuesday as well, causing the deaths of at least three people. Up to 8.8cm (3.5in) of rain fell there, causing river waters to inundate the village of Rudioso, officials said. That flood has now receded. In Texas, frantic search and rescue efforts continue, with Governor Greg Abbott vowing emergency crews "will not stop until every missing person is accounted for". Abbott added that it was very likely more missing would be added to the list in the coming days, and urged people to report anyone they think was unaccounted for. General Thomas Suelzer from the Texas National Guard said search efforts were using Chinook and Black Hawk helicopters with rescue hoists. He said there were 13 Black Hawk helicopters helping in the search effort, including four that arrived from Arkansas. Authorities have also been using reaper drones. Deadly Texas storms puts spotlight on Trump's weather agency cuts Three key factors that made Texas floods so deadly Floods in neighbouring New Mexico claim three lives Responders from various agencies are working together on rescue efforts. They include agents from border patrol, the FBI and the National Guard. More than 250 responders from various agencies have been assigned to the Kerrville area alone to help with search and rescue. One of those rescue volunteers, named Tim, told the BBC he had never seen any destruction at this scale before. "I've done the floods down in East Texas and Southeast Texas, and hurricanes, and this is a nightmare," he said. Another rescue volunteer, named Justin, compared the effort to "trying to find a single hay in a haystack". "There's a wide trail of destruction for miles, and there's not enough cadaver dogs to go through all of it," he told the BBC. "It's hard to access a lot of it with heavy machinery. Guys are trying to pick at it with tools and hands, and they're not even putting a dent in it – not for lack of effort." Questions have been raised about whether authorities provided adequate flood warnings before the disaster, and why people were not evacuated earlier. Experts say there were a number of factors that contributed to the tragedy in Texas, including the extreme weather, the location of the holiday homes and timing. Abbott, who had spent part of the day surveying the flood zone, said authorities had issued a storm warning and knew about a possible flash flood, but "didn't know the magnitude of the storm". No-one knew it would lead to a "30-foot high tsunami wall of water", he said. The governor responded to a question about who was to "blame" for the enormous death toll, saying: "That's the word choice of losers." He made a sports analogy, saying American football teams make mistakes; champion teams are the ones who don't "point fingers". 'Hero' dad, twin girls and riverside campers among Texas flood victims What early warnings did flood-hit Texas receive? Most of the victims died in Kerr County, where the Guadalupe River was swollen by torrential downpours before daybreak on Friday, the July Fourth public holiday. Camp Mystic had earlier confirmed at least 27 girls and staff were among the dead. Those who survived are now focused on trying to rebuild. Justin Brown has lived along the Guadalupe River for more than 25 years. A week ago, he lived in his mobile home at the Blue Oak RV Park with his two young daughters and dog. Now, there is a huge puddle where his home once stood – his RV swept away in the floods. "We were one of the few parks that got almost everybody out," Mr Brown told the BBC, as he described the efforts of his landlord and emergency workers, who evacuated almost all of the park's residents. Looking out over the empty land where his home once stood – now just debris – he said he hopes to move back in as soon as he can. President Donald Trump will travel to the flood-ravaged areas with First Lady Melania Trump on Friday. In neighbouring New Mexico, officials from the National Weather Service (NWS) declared a flash flood emergency on Tuesday and told residents of Ruidoso to be on high alert for flooding. A flood wave on the Rio Ruidoso went on to reach a height of 15ft, the NWS said. Houses were swept down the river, and a man and two children were killed. Officials there have been working with boats to rescue people who got trapped. A number of locals were unaccounted for as of Tuesday evening. You can also get in touch by following this link Texas floods death toll climbs to at least 107 'Hero' dad, twin girls and riverside campers among Texas flood victims 'Their house was swept away. We lost three beautiful friends'
Yahoo
09-07-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Days after Texas floods, at least 161 people are still missing in one county
At least 161 people are still missing in a single Texas county four days after deadly and devastating flash floods hit parts of the state, Governor Greg Abbott said, as hope fades for survivors to be found. The missing in the hard-hit Kerr County include five campers and a counsellor from Camp Mystic, a Christian all-girls summer camp located on the banks of the Guadalupe River. At least 111 people have died in the disaster, according to the latest county-by-county tolls published by US media. More than 90 were in the Kerrville area. Texas is not alone. Neighbouring New Mexico saw a flash flood emergency on Tuesday as well, causing the deaths of at least three people. Up to 8.8cm (3.5in) of rain fell there, causing river waters to inundate the village of Rudioso, officials said. That flood has now receded. In Texas, frantic search and rescue efforts continue, with Abbott vowing emergency crews "will not stop until every missing person is accounted for". Abbott added that it was very likely more missing would be added to the list in the coming days, and urged people to report anyone they think was unaccounted for. General Thomas Suelzer from the Texas National Guard said search efforts were using Chinook and Black Hawk helicopters with rescue hoists. He said there were 13 Black Hawk helicopters helping in the search effort, including four that arrived from Arkansas. Authorities have also been using reaper drones. Deadly Texas storms puts spotlight on Trump's weather agency cuts Three key factors that made Texas floods so deadly Floods in neighbouring New Mexico claim three lives Responders from various agencies are working together on rescue efforts. They include agents from border patrol, the FBI and the National Guard. More than 250 responders from various agencies have been assigned to the Kerrville area alone to help with search and rescue. One of those rescue volunteers, named Tim, told the BBC he had never seen any destruction at this scale before. "I've done the floods down in East Texas and Southeast Texas, and hurricanes, and this is a nightmare," he said. Another rescue volunteer, named Justin, compared the effort to "trying to find a single hay in a haystack". "There's a wide trail of destruction for miles, and there's not enough cadaver dogs to go through all of it," he told the BBC. "It's hard to access a lot of it with heavy machinery. Guys are trying to pick at it with tools and hands, and they're not even putting a dent in it – not for lack of effort." Questions have been raised about whether authorities provided adequate flood warnings before the disaster, and why people were not evacuated earlier. Experts say there were a number of factors that contributed to the tragedy in Texas, including the extreme weather, the location of the holiday homes and timing. Abbott, who had spent part of the day surveying the flood zone, said authorities had issued a storm warning and knew about a possible flash flood, but "didn't know the magnitude of the storm". No-one knew it would lead to a "30-foot high tsunami wall of water", he said. The governor responded to a question about who was to "blame" for the enormous death toll, saying: "That's the word choice of losers." He made a sports analogy, saying American football teams make mistakes; champion teams are the ones who don't "point fingers". 'Hero' dad, twin girls and riverside campers among Texas flood victims What early warnings did flood-hit Texas receive? Most of the victims died in Kerr County, where the Guadalupe River was swollen by torrential downpours before daybreak on Friday, the July Fourth public holiday. Camp Mystic had earlier confirmed at least 27 girls and staff were among the dead. Those who survived are now focused on trying to rebuild. Justin Brown has lived along the Guadalupe River for more than 25 years. A week ago, he lived in his mobile home at the Blue Oak RV Park with his two young daughters and dog. Now, there is a huge puddle where his home once stood – his RV swept away in the floods. "We were one of the few parks that got almost everybody out," Mr Brown told the BBC, as he described the efforts of his landlord and emergency workers, who evacuated almost all of the park's residents. Looking out over the empty land where his home once stood – now just debris – he said he hopes to move back in as soon as he can. President Donald Trump will travel to the flood-ravaged areas with First Lady Melania Trump on Friday. In neighbouring New Mexico, officials from the National Weather Service (NWS) declared a flash flood emergency on Tuesday and told residents of Ruidoso to be on high alert for flooding. A flood wave on the Rio Ruidoso went on to reach a height of 15ft, the NWS said. Houses were swept down the river, and a man and two children were killed. Officials there have been working with boats to rescue people who got trapped. A number of locals were unaccounted for as of Tuesday evening. Texas floods death toll climbs to at least 107 'Hero' dad, twin girls and riverside campers among Texas flood victims 'Their house was swept away. We lost three beautiful friends'
