Nine more deaths confirmed in Texas floods - bringing total to at least 91

Sky News

5 days ago

At least 91 people have died in the flash floods that have left a trail of destruction across Texas, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said.
Ms Leavitt also warned that "the situation on the ground remains dangerous" and that there "could be additional public safety threats with additional incoming heavy rain".
The White House press secretary went on to criticise people who have claimed the Trump administration's cuts to the National Weather Service (NWS) have played a role in the worsening the disaster.
It comes after Texas officials criticised the NWS by claiming it failed to warn the public about the impending danger.
Meanwhile, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer asked the Department of Commerce's acting inspector general on Monday to probe whether staffing vacancies at the NWS's San Antonio office contributed to "delays, gaps, or diminished accuracy" in forecasting the flooding.
The NWS did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Mr Schumer's letter but earlier defended its forecasting and emergency management.
Ms Leavitt has told reporters that claims Mr Trump was responsible for any issues responding to the flash floods were "depraved and despicable".
"It is not [a political game], it is a national tragedy," she said.
The press secretary also claimed, in relation to some NWS offices being reportedly understaffed, that one place actually had "too many people".
"Any person who has deliberately lied about the facts around the catastrophic event, you should be deeply ashamed," she said.
She also said that Mr Trump was going to visit Texas "later in the week".
Previously, Mr Trump said it was likely he would visit on Friday.
Ms Leavitt was speaking after Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha said on Monday that 75 bodies had been recovered from the area, which is seven more than the previous figure for the county.
Sheriff Leitha said the number of dead includes 48 adults and 27 children. The total figure is seven higher than the 68 deaths that had earlier been confirmed in Kerr County.
In a separate news conference in Williamson County, officials there said a second person had been confirmed dead in the area.
One official warned that debris was posing a threat to rescuers out searching for bodies, adding: "The bodies that we're looking for could be hidden beneath 20ft of mud, trees and debris."
An official also warned rescuers had to be wary of "snakes and skunks" in the water.
He asked people to keep away from the floodwater.
One death had earlier been confirmed in Tom Green, while there had been four fatalities in Burnet, six fatalities in Travis County and two in Kendall.
Mr Leavitt did not say where the 91st death had been confirmed.
Sheriff Leitha has said 15 of the dead were still unidentified.
In Kerr County, at least 27 deaths were confirmed after some of the worst flooding struck a girls' summer camp called Camp Mystic.
Among those killed were campers as young as eight, a camp counsellor and the camp's director.
At least 41 people are still missing in the state - including 10 girls from the camp.
Texas Senator Ted Cruz spoke at the same news conference where the latest death figures were confirmed and said: "Texas is grieving right now, the pain, the shock of what has transpired these last few days has broken the heart of our state.
"Those numbers [the number of dead] are continuing to go up... that's every parent's nightmare, every mum and dad."
He said he had picked up his own daughter from a camp in the area last week.
3:25
Mr Cruz added: "Over the last several days, I've spoken to multiple parents, scared out of their minds.
"There's still ten girls and one counsellor from Camp Mystic that are not accounted for.
"And the pain and agony of not knowing your child's whereabouts, it's the worst thing imaginable."
He added: "You know what I'd do? What I did when this happened? Just go hug your kids.
"Because I've got to tell you, I hugged my girls with tears in my eyes."
Apparently referencing people claiming the Trump administration's cuts played a role in worsening disaster, Mr Cruz said at the news conference: "I think this is not a time for partisan finger-pointing and attacks."
Dalton Rice, the city manager of Kerrville in Kerr County, was asked whether evacuation warnings could have been issued earlier.
He said: "It's very tough to make those calls because we also don't want to cry wolf.
"You know, we want to make sure that we activated [it] at the right time."
He added: "We had first responders getting swept away, responding to the first areas of rainfall. That's how quick it happened.
"They were driving to these areas and one of them got swept off the road."
Texas Game Wardens had arrived at Camp Mystic on Friday afternoon and began evacuating campers.
A rope was tied so girls could hang on as they walked across a bridge, the floodwaters rushing around their knees.
Elinor Lester, 13, said she was evacuated with her cabinmates by helicopter after wading through floodwaters.
She recalled startling awake around 1:30am as thunder crackled and water pelted the cabin windows.
Ms Lester was among the older girls housed on elevated ground known as Senior Hill.
Cabins housing the younger campers, who can start attending at age eight, are situated along the riverbanks and were the first to flood, she said.
"The camp was completely destroyed," she said. "It was really scary."
Her mother, Elizabeth Lester, said her son was nearby at Camp La Junta and also escaped.
A counsellor there woke up to find water rising in the cabin, opened a window and helped the boys swim out.
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Camp La Junta and nearby Camp Waldemar said in Instagram posts that all campers and staff were safe.
It comes after Texas agriculture minister Sid Miller told Fox News that cattle and livestock were found on the "tops of trees" in the state due to a "26ft wall of water".