Scrutiny over Texas flood alerts and conservative anger after Epstein memo release: Morning Rundown
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In deadly Texas floods, one town had what some didn't: A wailing warning siren
The death toll as a result of devastating floods in Central Texas rose to at least 104 people across six counties, officials said yesterday. The majority, 84, were killed in Kerr County, including 27 campers and counselors at the 99-year-old Camp Mystic. Seven people were killed in Travis County; four in Burnet County; six in Kendall County; and one in Tom Green County.
Search and recovery efforts are still underway, though the likelihood of finding survivors is growing slimmer.
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As the aftermath of the floods comes into clearer view, questions and criticisms have emerged about the timing of the weather alerts sent to people in the area. Some Texas officials have blamed the National Weather Service, arguing it didn't do a good enough job of forecasting rainfall and issuing timely flooding alerts.
In Kerr County, a flood watch was issued Thursday afternoon, and an urgent flash flood warning was issued at 1:14 a.m. Friday morning. Downriver in the town of Comfort, a flash flood alert for Kendall County came at 7:24 a.m. Friday — and a wailing siren urging residents to flee provided a last-minute alarm for anyone who hadn't responded to previous warnings.
There were zero fatalities in Comfort, according to Danny Morales, assistant fire chief of the city's volunteer fire department.
It's impossible to know whether a siren system in Kerr County would have saved lives. The systems are meant to alert people who are outdoors, not in bed indoors, as many victims were. And many people in Kendall County were already awake and aware of the dangerous flooding when they were alerted of the threat to their area.
But Tom Moser — a former Kerr County commissioner who began looking into a warning system for his area 10 years ago, after deadly floods in nearby Hays County — believes a system would have been valuable. Records show there were disagreements among officials about the need for a siren system, and the county didn't have the funding it needed.
'I don't know if it could have been 100% preventable,' Moser said of the current disaster's death toll. 'But it could have been improved.'
More coverage of the Texas floods:
Photos and maps show the severity of the flooding along the Guadalupe River.
NBC News' Morgan Chesky, who grew up in Kerrville, wrote about what it's like returning home to cover the tragedy. His parents evacuated in the early hours of Friday morning, and their home is still standing, Chesky wrote, 'but we have friends who this has personally affected.' Read the full essay here.
Community members, like 22-year-old Samuel Cummings, and volunteers from profit organizations have joined authorities in the search for survivors. Cummings, who grew up in Kerrville and swam the Guadalupe River as a kid, said the tragic sight of remnants from Camp Mystic — girls' Crocs, tennis shoes, volleyballs and water bottles — left him 'choked up.'
Trump to push back tariff deadline but unloads new threats
A pause on reciprocal tariffs that had been set to end this week will be extended to the end of the month, the White House said, after President Donald Trump pushed the deadline to Aug. 1. The announcement from press secretary Karoline Leavitt that Trump would sign an executive order came hours after the president published two letters addressed to Japan and South Korea, threatening them with 25% duties and higher ones for items deemed to have been transshipped through their countries. Later in the day, Trump posted letters threatening duties as much as 40% on goods from Laos and Myanmar, 30% on goods from South Africa and 25% on goods from Malaysia and Kazakhstan.
However, Trump's ability to impose the tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act is under court review.
The pushed-back deadline and threats represent a return to the back-and-forth, on-again, off-again state of affairs that has prevailed before and after Trump's April 2 speech announcing extreme import duties on dozens of countries. While some markets saw dips in light of Trump's threats, some Wall Street analysts are optimistic that this new round of uncertainty may not weigh as heavily on stocks this time around — though it could prove to be a setback for the Federal Reserve. Read the full story here.
More politics news:
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with Trump at the White House. Both leaders complimented each other on their alliance in the conflict in Iran and struck an optimistic tone on a ceasefire deal in Gaza.
Minnesota state Sen. John Hoffman, who along with his wife was injured in a shooting spree that took the life of a fellow lawmaker, was released from intensive care.
Both Republicans and Democrats bet Trump's megabill can help them win big in the 2026 midterms. Here's how.
Conservative anger over Trump admin's latest Epstein memo
A new two-page memo published by the FBI and Justice Department concluded after an 'exhaustive review' that there is no evidence of an 'incriminating 'client list'' or evidence that would lead to additional prosecutions in the case of convicted sex offender and financier Jeffrey Epstein. The memo also concluded that Epstein died by suicide in his New York City jail cell in 2019 and that no evidence was found to suggest he had participated in blackmail.
The findings closely mirror what news outlets have reported for years, but the findings have done little to quell conservative internet and media personalities who have reacted to the memo with skepticism and anger. Elon Musk, who has recently feuded with Donald Trump, reposted a post that suggested a larger government cover-up. Several conservative personalities echoed that idea, including Mike Benz, who worked in the State Department during Trump's first term, and said he believes there is a vast 'deep state' conspiracy. Another commentator said the memo is part of a 'shameful chapter' in U.S. history. Read the full story here.
Read All About It
A man was killed after an exchange of gunfire with Border Patrol agents in South Texas that also left an agency employee and two officers injured.
The Army veteran accused of killing his three daughters in Washington state and disappearing into the wilderness may have been spotted in Idaho.
The leader of an 'orgasmic meditation' business condemned what she believes is a double standard in how her case ended versus Sean Combs' case.
Jasper Philipsen, a Tour de France sprint favorite, crashed out of the race just two days after taking first place on opening day.
'Love Island USA' contestant Cierra Orta left the villa after viewers uncovered old social media posts that contained a racial slur.
Staff Pick: The rising cost of home construction
When the Trump administration announced sweeping tariffs at the beginning of April, we wanted to better understand how these policies could affect readers' daily lives. After hearing concerns from home builders about the effects on their businesses, we decided to explore how the cost of building a new house could change due to tariffs.
To get the numbers we needed for a representative sample, we designed a model house, determined every material required to build it and then used trade data to identify which countries the U.S. most relied on for each item. Our interactive visualization takes readers through the step-by-step construction of a house, showing how tariffs could add thousands to home prices at a time when the U.S. is already grappling with a severe housing shortage.
Industry experts we spoke with explained that tariffs don't just add direct costs. They create downstream effects that force builders to pause projects and scramble for alternatives. As additional tariffs loom on the horizon, builders face mounting pressures to make decisions about materials and pricing. According to Robert Dietz, chief economist at the National Association of Home Builders, it's only a matter of time before consumers feel the effects. — Alex Ford, interactive visual designer
NBC Select: Online Shopping, Simplified
This week is stacked with deals. To start, Amazon Prime Day is officially here, and NBC Select has a roundup of the 33+ best deals. We also have a list of everything to shop for or skip during the four-day sale. And while we're at it, we dug into the history of Prime Day, and our editors rounded up their 100 favorite Amazon finds.
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