logo
Texas Flood Death Toll: Families desperate as number reaches 52; 27 girls still unaccounted for as searches continue

Texas Flood Death Toll: Families desperate as number reaches 52; 27 girls still unaccounted for as searches continue

Time of India06-07-2025
Texas floods death toll by county: latest numbers
Kerr County: 44 confirmed dead. Most victims were swept away along the Guadalupe River near Hunt and Ingram, where floodwaters rose over 25 feet in under an hour.
Travis County: 5 dead. Several cars were caught on flooded roads west of Austin.
Burnet County: 2 dead. A father and daughter were found in a trailer near Lake Buchanan.
Kendall County: 1 confirmed dead. A woman's body was recovered near Comfort after her car was washed off a rural crossing.
Live Events
The missing and the waiting
A region known for danger
Frantic rescues, bitter questions
Families swept away
(You can now subscribe to our
(You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel
When the rain came, it wasn't gentle. It battered central Texas in the early hours of Friday, turning the Guadalupe River into a raging force that rose 26 feet in just 45 minutes. By Saturday night, the floods had killed at least 52 people, 15 of them children, and left rescuers combing through debris and mud for the missing.In Kerr County alone, 43 lives were lost. Many were campers at Camp Mystic , a Christian summer retreat that had stood along the river for nearly a century. It's here that 27 girls are still unaccounted for.'The camp was completely destroyed,' said Elinor Lester, 13, one of the survivors. 'A helicopter landed and started taking people away. It was really scary.'The death toll from the flash floods that ripped through Texas Hill Country has climbed to 52, including 15 children. Search teams are still combing through debris and swollen rivers, with 27 girls from Camp Mystic still missing. Here's what we know so far about where victims were found:Search teams have rescued more than 850 people so far — some from trees, others from rooftops. But there's a grim sense that time is slipping away. Dalton Rice, Kerrville City Manager, said, 'We're tracking the 'known missing' — the 27 — but there could be others. We simply don't know yet.'At an elementary school acting as a reunification centre, families wait for news. Some cling to hope. Others brace for the worst.'We still have people coming here looking for their loved ones. We've had a little success, but not much,' said Bobby Templeton, superintendent of Ingram Independent School District.This part of Texas has a nickname: flash flood alley . It's earned. The Hill Country is all rugged slopes and shallow soils that shed rain like a tin roof.'When it rains, water doesn't soak into the soil,' said Austin Dickson, CEO of the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country. 'It rushes down the hill.'In the past, officials had considered setting up a flood siren system along the river — like the tornado sirens in the Midwest. 'We know we get rains. We know the river rises. But nobody saw this coming,' said Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly. He admitted the plan for flood warnings never got off the ground, partly because of the cost.Inside Camp Mystic, the chaos came fast. Some campers crossed bridges roped together in knee-high water. Others were lifted out by helicopter. An 8-year-old girl from Alabama was among the confirmed dead. Jane Ragsdale, co-owner of Heart O' the Hills, another nearby camp, died in the flooding too.Governor Greg Abbott declared a state of disaster and urged Texans to pray. 'I urge every Texan to join me in prayer this Sunday — for the lives lost, for those still missing, for the recovery of our communities, and for the safety of those on the front lines,' he said.Yet there's anger too. AccuWeather claimed its warnings, along with alerts from the National Weather Service, should have given officials enough time to evacuate vulnerable camps. 'These warnings should have provided officials with ample time to evacuate camps such as Camp Mystic and get people to safety,' the company said.Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem admitted the forecast had fallen short. 'A moderate flood watch issued on Thursday… did not accurately predict the extreme rainfall,' she said.Former NOAA director Rick Spinrad put it more bluntly: 'People's ability to prepare for these storms will be compromised. It undoubtedly means that additional lives will be lost and probably more property damage.'There's no shortage of horror stories. Erin Burgess and her teenage son clung to a tree for an hour after water poured into their house. 'My son and I floated to a tree where we hung onto it, and my boyfriend and my dog floated away. He was lost for a while, but we found them,' she said.Barry Adelman watched water drive his entire family — including his 94-year-old grandmother and his 9-year-old grandson — into the attic. 'I was having to look at my grandson in the face and tell him everything was going to be OK, but inside I was scared to death.'W. Nim Kidd, chief of the Texas Division of Emergency Management, promised that no one will give up. 'The process is going to keep going,' he said. 'We're not going to stop until we find everyone that's missing.'President Donald Trump offered prayers and federal aid. 'Our Brave First Responders are on site doing what they do best,' he posted.Yet for many families in the Hill Country, the truth is harder than any headline. Tonia Fucci summed up the mood as she stood in Comfort, a town downstream from Camp Mystic. 'Complete shock. I'm still in shock today. And with the rescues going on and helicopters, you just know there's so many missing children and missing people. You just want them to be found for the sake of the families. But, you know, it's not going to be a good ending.'Here's the thing. In places like this, rain can turn deadly overnight. The question is whether this time, someone should have seen it coming.(With inputs from Agencies)
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Texas flood death toll rises to 131 as new storms loom
Texas flood death toll rises to 131 as new storms loom

Time of India

time15 hours ago

  • Time of India

Texas flood death toll rises to 131 as new storms loom

The death toll from recent Texas storms has risen to 131, with Kerr County being the hardest hit following a devastating flash flood on July 4. A flood watch is in effect for central Texas, including areas still recovering from the disaster. FILE: First responders carry out search and rescue operations near the Guadalupe River after a flash flood swept through the area, Monday, July 7, 2025, in Ingram, Texas. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads The official tally of storm-related deaths across Texas rose to 131 on Monday as authorities warned of yet another round of heavy rains 10 days after a Hill Country flash flood that transformed the Guadalupe River into a killer torrent. National Weather Service flood watch forecasting heavy downpours of up to half a foot of rain was posted until Tuesday morning for a wide swath of central Texas extending from the Rio Grande east to San Antonio and advisory included Kerr County and other parts of Texas Hill Country along the Guadalupe still recovering from the July 4 flood disaster, which ravaged the county seat of Kerrville and a riverside Christian summer camp for girls in the nearby town of residents as well as search teams still combing the banks of the waterway were advised to seek higher ground until the latest danger had passed. The search for additional victims along the Guadalupe was likewise suspended due to flood concerns on Governor Greg Abbott on Monday said storms had claimed at least 131 lives in Texas since July 4, the bulk of those deaths in and around Kerrville, up from 120 reported on said 97 people were still listed as missing in the greater Kerrville area, down from the 160-plus who authorities said were unaccounted for last a third of the Kerr County fatalities are children, most of whom perished at Camp Mystic when floodwaters raged through the girls-only summer retreat before dawn on July have not rescued anyone alive since the day of the floods, when more than a foot of rain fell in less than an hour in the heart of a region known as "flash flood alley," sending a deadly wall of water down the Guadalupe River said state lawmakers would investigate the circumstances of the flooding, disaster preparedness and emergency response to the flooding at a special legislative session set to convene later this high casualty toll, ranking as one of the deadliest U.S. flood events in decades, has raised questions about the lack of flash-flood warning sirens in Kerr County and vacancies left at National Weather Service offices amid staffing cuts under the Trump administration.

Texas flood death toll rises to 131 as new storms loom
Texas flood death toll rises to 131 as new storms loom

The Hindu

time17 hours ago

  • The Hindu

Texas flood death toll rises to 131 as new storms loom

The official tally of storm-related deaths across Texas rose to 131 on Monday (July 14, 2025) as authorities warned of yet another round of heavy rains 10 days after a Hill Country flash flood that transformed the Guadalupe River into a killer torrent. A National Weather Service flood watch forecasting heavy downpours of up to half a foot of rain was posted until Tuesday (July 15, 2025) morning for a wide swath of central Texas extending from the Rio Grande east to San Antonio and Austin. The advisory included Kerr County and other parts of Texas Hill Country along the Guadalupe still recovering from the July 4 flood disaster, which ravaged the county seat of Kerrville and a riverside Christian summer camp for girls in the nearby town of Hunt. Riverfront residents as well as search teams still combing the banks of the waterway were advised to seek higher ground until the latest danger had passed. The search for additional victims along the Guadalupe was likewise suspended due to flood concerns on Sunday (July 13, 2025). Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Monday said storms had claimed at least 131 lives in Texas since July 4, the bulk of those deaths in and around Kerrville, up from 120 reported on Friday. He said 97 people were still listed as missing in the greater Kerrville area, down from the 160-plus who authorities said were unaccounted for last week. About a third of the Kerr County fatalities are children, most of whom perished at Camp Mystic when floodwaters raged through the girls-only summer retreat before dawn on July 4. Authorities have not rescued anyone alive since the day of the floods, when more than a foot of rain fell in less than an hour in the heart of a region known as "flash flood alley," sending a deadly wall of water down the Guadalupe River basin. Mr. Abbott said State lawmakers would investigate the circumstances of the flooding, disaster preparedness and emergency response to the flooding at a special legislative session set to convene later this month. The high casualty toll, ranking as one of the deadliest U.S. flood events in decades, has raised questions about the lack of flash-flood warning sirens in Kerr County and vacancies left at National Weather Service offices amid staffing cuts under the Trump administration.

Texas flood death toll rises to 131, dozens still missing amid new rain threat
Texas flood death toll rises to 131, dozens still missing amid new rain threat

India Today

time18 hours ago

  • India Today

Texas flood death toll rises to 131, dozens still missing amid new rain threat

The death toll from a devastating series of floods across Texas climbed to 131 on Monday, as Governor Greg Abbott warned that another wave of heavy rainfall threatens to worsen what is already one of the deadliest flood disasters in recent US a press briefing, Abbott said, 'Storms have claimed at least 131 lives in Texas since July 4,' with most of the fatalities in and around Kerrville — where the Guadalupe River turned deadly following a flash flood during the Independence Day of Monday, 97 people remained unaccounted for in the greater Kerrville area, though that number had dropped from over 160 missing last week. The governor confirmed that 'about a third of the Kerr County fatalities are children,' many of whom were killed when water surged through Camp Mystic, a girls-only Christian summer camp in the town of Hunt. The torrential July 4 storm dumped over a foot of rain in under an hour in Texas Hill Country — an area ominously nicknamed "flash flood alley" — triggering a lethal surge down the Guadalupe River and search efforts have been further complicated by another round of storms. A National Weather Service flood watch forecasting heavy downpours of up to half a foot of rain was posted until Tuesday morning for a wide swath of central Texas extending from the Rio Grande east to San Antonio and have halted recovery operations along the riverbanks due to renewed flooding concerns. Residents and search teams have been urged to seek higher also announced that the Texas Legislature will convene a special session later this month to investigate the flood disaster's root causes, including emergency response and preparedness. He noted rising public concern over the 'lack of flash-flood warning sirens in Kerr County and staffing shortages at National Weather Service offices' due to earlier federal cuts.- EndsInputs from Reuters

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store