First Thing: Texas floods death toll rises as search for survivors turns to recovery operation

The Guardian

07-07-2025

Good morning.
Residents in central Texas observed a day of prayer on Sunday after at least 82 people were killed with dozens still missing after Friday's devastating flash flooding, as a search and rescue operation for survivors began to morph into a grim exercise of recovering bodies.
Relatives continued an anxious wait for news of 10 girls and one camp counselor still unaccounted for from a riverside summer camp that was overwhelmed by flash flooding from the Guadalupe River, which rose 26ft (8 meters) in 45 minutes on Friday morning after torrential pre-dawn rain north of San Antonio.
Camp Mystic confirmed on Monday that 27 campers and counsellors were killed, with the search continuing for the missing girls and their counselor along the river.
Why weren't people given more warning? Rainfall of this magnitude is exceedingly rare and difficult to predict, even for this flood-prone region, though questions are now being asked about preparedness and the emergency response.
Follow live updates here.
A jury in Australia has found Erin Patterson guilty of murdering three relatives and attempting to murder a fourth with a deadly beef wellington lunch almost two years ago.
As the trial entered its 11th week, a Victorian supreme court jury convicted Patterson of murdering her estranged husband's parents, Don and Gail Patterson, and his aunt, Heather Wilkinson. The 12-person jury also found Patterson guilty of attempting to murder Heather's husband, Ian Wilkinson, who survived the lunch after spending weeks in hospital.
As the verdicts were read out, Patterson looked ahead calmly. No members of the Patterson or Wilkinson families attended court for the verdicts.
How did the victims die? The guests were all diagnosed with amanita mushroom poisoning, caused by consuming death cap mushrooms, the trial heard.
What was the motive for the killings? The prosecution did not allege a motive and Patterson's defence barrister claimed she never intended to harm her guests.
Donald Trump has said his administration plans to start sending letters on Monday to US trade partners dictating new tariffs, amid confusion over when the new rates will come into effect.
With his previously announced 90-day pause on tariffs set to end on 9 July, the president was asked if the new rates would come into effect this week or on 1 August, as some officials had suggested.
Trump answered uncertainly and, sensing the confusion, his commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, jumped in to add: 'But they go into effect on August 1. Tariffs go into effect August 1, but the president is setting the rates and the deals right now.'
What did Trump say when asked? 'No, there are going to be tariffs, the tariffs, the tariffs are going to be, the tariffs,' the president said. 'I think we'll have most countries done by July 9, yeah. Either a letter or a deal.'
Israeli warplanes launched a wave of strikes in Gaza on Sunday, killing at least 38 Palestinians, according to hospital officials, as talks over a ceasefire in the devastated territory reached a critical point.
Shares in Tesla are heading for a sharp fall in the US as investors fear Elon Musk's launch of a new political party will present further problems for the electric carmaker.
The herbicide ingredient used to replace glyphosate in Roundup and other weedkiller products can damage organs in multiple ways, new research shows.
Two-time Oscar winner Michael Douglas has revealed he may be finished with acting, saying he has 'no real intentions' to return to the industry.
Scientists are just a few years from creating viable human sex cells in the lab, according to an internationally renowned pioneer of the field, who says the advance could open up biology-defying possibilities for reproduction. Speaking to the Guardian, Prof Katsuhiko Hayashi, a developmental geneticist at the University of Osaka, said his own lab was about seven years away from the milestone, but there were other frontrunners.
Looking like a teetering stack of washing machines perched on the edge of an elevated highway, the Nakagin Capsule Tower was an astonishing arrival on the Tokyo skyline in 1972. They had portholes, cutting edge mod cons – and the ultra luxurious models even came with a free calculator. As a piece of Japan's beloved building resurfaces at a new exhibition, Oliver Wainwright celebrates an architectural marvel.
Known as the 'cherry capital of the world', Traverse City's National Cherry festival draws 500,000 visitors over eight days to this picturesque Lake Michigan beach town to enjoy carnival rides and airshows, and to eat cherries. All the sunshine and festivities, however, can't hide an ugly truth: Michigan's cherry farmers are in dire straits. Climate change, development, labor shortages and tariffs threaten their ability to grow one of Michigan's signature crops.
As global population ages and dementia rates climb, scientists may have found an unexpected ally in the fight against cognitive decline. In a potential breakthrough for preventive health, researchers have found that owning a cat or dog is linked to slower cognitive decline by potentially preserving specific brain functions as we grow older.
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