Rescuers were desperately searching for at least 23 girls missing from a riverside summer camp, officials said Friday, after torrential rains caused a “catastrophic” flash flood that killed at least 24 people as it swept through south-central Texas.
“At this point we’re at about 24 fatalities,” Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha told an evening press conference as rescue teams scrambled to locate stranded residents in the region northwest of San Antonio.
Some of the dead were children, Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick said at a previous news conference.
The county sheriff said there were “kids that are still missing,” adding that between 23 and 25 people were unaccounted for.
Lieutenant Governor Patrick previously said “about 23” girls attending a summer camp in the flooded Kerr County were missing.
They were part of a group of around 750 children at Camp Mystic, a girls’ summer camp along the banks of the Guadalupe River which rose 26 feet (eight meters) in 45 minutes with heavy rainfall overnight.
“That does not mean they’ve been lost, they could be in a tree, they could be out of communication,” he said.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott said he was signing a “disaster declaration” to boost resources in counties in the region.
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“It’s terrible, the floods,” US President Donald Trump told reporters Friday night. “It’s shocking.”
Asked if Texas would receive federal aid, he said: “Oh yeah, sure, we’ll take care of it. We’re working with the governor.”
Rescue efforts
A massive rescue operation was underway in the region, with around 500 personnel and 14 helicopters helping in the search for survivors.
Texas military official Major General Thomas Suelzer told reporters at least 237 people had been rescued or evacuated by emergency personnel, with 167 rescues performed using helicopters.
Freeman Martin, director of the state’s public safety department, told the evening conference: “We had a hard time getting in this morning with the weather the way it was.”
“As the day went on, it picked up and we were able to rescue more and recover more, that will continue tomorrow,” Martin said, calling the disaster a “mass casualty event.”
US media reported that trucks had arrived at Camp Mystic to transport stranded people.
State and local officials warned against residents traveling to the area which includes camp grounds dotted along the river, with dozens of roads “impassable.”
Videos on social media showed houses and trees swept away by the flash flood caused by heavy overnight rain of up to 12 inches — one-third of Kerr County’s average annual rainfall.
Governor Abbott shared a video on X of a victim being plucked from the top of a tree by a rescuer dangling from a helicopter, as floodwaters raged below.
“Air rescue missions like this are being done around the clock. We will not stop until everyone is accounted for,” he said.
The Texas National Guard sent rescue teams and the US Coast Guard joined efforts as well.
‘Another wave’
Public safety official Martin warned of “another wave” that could impact other counties in the state, adding that “this is not going to end today.”
Kerr County officials have repeatedly said they were unaware of an impending flood overnight from Thursday to Friday.
“We didn’t know this flood was coming,” Kerr County judge Rob Kelly said earlier on Friday, adding that the region has “floods all the time.”
“This is the most dangerous river valley in the United States,” he added, referring to the Guadalupe River.
Forecasters issued a flood warning for Kerr County, urging those living near the river to “move to higher ground.”
Flash floods, which occur when the ground is unable to absorb torrential rainfall, are not unusual.
But scientists say in recent years human-driven climate change has made extreme weather events like floods, droughts and heatwaves more frequent and intense.
In mid-June, at least 10 people were killed by flash flooding in San Antonio following torrential rains.
In the northeastern state of New Jersey, at least two people were killed when a tree fell on their vehicle during a “severe storm,” local police confirmed on Friday.
Camp Mystic
Children are among the dead, said Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who has taken on the duties of acting governor.
There are several major camps in the area, and at one of them, Camp Mystic, about 23 of its 750 campers are unaccounted for, according to Patrick.
“That does not mean they’ve been lost — they could be in a tree, they could be out of communication. We are praying for all of those missing to be found alive,” Patrick said at a news conference.
Camp Mystic said in a letter to parents, “If your daughter is not accounted for, you have been notified. If you have not been personally contacted, then your daughter is accounted for.”
Up to 12 inches of rain has already fallen in Kerr County, about 60 miles north of San Antonio, with the rain ongoing through the evening.
Dozens of people were rescued Friday morning and search efforts are ongoing, Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly said.
“This came at night, when people were asleep in bed,” Kerrville Mayor Joe Herring said at an earlier news conference, overcome with emotion. “Please pray for our community.”
The Guadalupe River in Kerr County rose a whopping 26 feet in 45 minutes, Patrick said. The river reached its second-highest height on record, surpassing a 1987 flood level, the National Weather Service said.
While most residents should avoid traveling, “those near creeks, streams, and the Guadalupe River should immediately move to higher ground,” the sheriff’s office warned.
At one campground along the Guadalupe River, people filmed videos of themselves evacuating when they noticed flood water encroaching under their vehicle. Other videos showed cars and cabins submerged.
“I was up all night keeping an eye on weather alerts. 2am there was a river flood warning. The river was a good distance from our site, so we thought we would be fine,” one camper, Katie, told ABC News via Instagram. “At about 5:30am, we heard banging on our RV door, yelling for us to get out now. The Guadalupe River had risen rapidly. We got the kids in the truck and were prepared to leave our camper behind if need be. We were able to hook up our camper and get it out too.”
“The river was up to the back of our campsite when we left. The river was raging and you could hear trees and objects breaking,” she said. “It was a very scary situation, but we are very blessed by the workers at the park for waking people up and getting us out of there. Praying for everyone affected by the flooding.”
AFP/ABC News
