Multiple dead as severe storms, flooding hit Texas and New Jersey
The storms are being blamed for at least three deaths in central New Jersey, including two men in Plainfield who died after a tree fell onto a vehicle they were traveling in during the height of the storm, according to a city Facebook post.
The men were ages 79 and 25, officials said. They were not immediately publicly identified.
'Our hearts are heavy today,' Mayor Adrian O. Mapp said in a statement.
'This tragedy is a sobering reminder of the power of nature and the fragility of life.'
The city canceled its planned July Fourth parade, concert and fireworks show. Mapp said the 'devastating' storms had left 'deep scars and widespread damage' in the community of more than 54,000 people and it was a time to 'regroup and focus all of our energy on recovery.'
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Continuing power outages and downed trees were reported Friday throughout southern New England, where some communities received large amounts of hail.
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There were reports of cars skidding off the road in northeastern Connecticut.
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In Texas, as much as 10 inches of heavy rain over just a few hours overnight in central Kerr County caused flash flooding of the Guadalupe River. The Kerr County sheriff's office confirmed fatalities on social media but did not provide additional details.
The Guadalupe's river gauge at the unincorporated community of Hunt, where the river forks, recorded a 22 foot rise in just about two hours, according to Bob Fogarty, meteorologist with the National Weather Service's Austin/San Antonio office. Fogarty said the gauge failed after recording a level of 29 and a half feet.
'We think the river's higher than that,' Forgarty said. 'The gauge is completely underwater.'
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A flood watch issued Thursday afternoon estimated isolated amounts up to seven inches. That shifted to a flood warning for at least 30,000 people overnight.
The riverfront communities include several camps, wildlife habitats and campgrounds. Texas Game Wardens, part of the state parks and wildlife agency, said on Facebook that search and rescue teams are conducting rescues throughout the region and sending more boats to help.
'This is the kind of thing that will catch you unaware,' Fogarty said. 'The water's moving so fast, you're not going to recognize how bad it is until it's on top of you.'
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Global News
an hour ago
- Global News
Desperate search for two dozen missing girls from summer camp after Texas floods kill at least 24
Crews searched through the dark early Saturday for two dozen children from a girls camp and many others still missing after a wall of water rushed down a river in the Texas Hill Country during a powerful storm that killed at least 24 people. The destructive fast-moving waters along the Guadalupe River rose 26 feet (8 meters) in just 45 minutes before dawn Friday, washing away homes and vehicles. The danger was not over as more heavy rains were expected Saturday and flash flood warnings and flood watches remained in effect for parts of central Texas. Searchers used helicopters and drones to look for victims and rescue people stranded. The total number of missing was not known but one sheriff said about 24 of them were girls who had been attending Camp Mystic, a Christian summer camp along the river. Frantic parents and families posted photos of missing loved ones and pleas for information. Story continues below advertisement 'The camp was completely destroyed,' said Elinor Lester, 13, one of hundreds of campers at Camp Mystic. 'A helicopter landed and started taking people away. It was really scary.' A raging storm woke up her cabin just after midnight Friday, and when rescuers arrived, they tied a rope for the girls to hold as they walked across a bridge with floodwaters whipping around their legs, she said. At a news conference late Friday, Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha said 24 people were confirmed dead. Authorities said about 240 people had been rescued. The flooding in the middle of the night on the Fourth of July holiday caught many residents, campers and officials by surprise. Officials defended their preparations for severe weather and their response but said they had not expected such an intense downpour that was, in effect, the equivalent of months' worth of rain for the area. One National Weather Service forecast this week had called for only between three and six inches (76 to 152 millimeters) of rain, said Nim Kidd, the chief of the Texas Division of Emergency Management. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'It did not predict the amount of rain that we saw,' he said. Helicopters, drones used in frantic search for missing One river gauge near Camp Mystic recorded a 22 foot rise (6.7 meters) in about two hours, said Bob Fogarty, meteorologist with the National Weather Service's Austin/San Antonio office. The gauge failed after recording a level of 29 and a half feet (9 meters). Story continues below advertisement 'The water's moving so fast, you're not going to recognize how bad it is until it's on top of you,' Fogarty said. On the Kerr County sheriff's office Facebook page, people posted pictures of loved ones and begged for help finding them. At least 400 people were on the ground helping in the response, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said. Rescue teams, helicopters and drones were being used, with some people being rescued from trees. 'Pitch black wall of death' In Ingram, Erin Burgess woke to thunder and rain in the middle of the night Friday. Just 20 minutes later, water was pouring into her home directly across from the river, she said. She described an agonizing hour clinging to a tree and waiting for the water to recede enough to walk up the hill to a neighbor's home. '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. Of her 19-year-old son, Burgess said: 'Thankfully he's over 6 feet tall. That's the only thing that saved me, was hanging on to him.' Matthew Stone, 44, of Kerrville, said police came knocking on doors but that he had received no warning on his phone. Story continues below advertisement 'We got no emergency alert. There was nothing,' Stone said. Then 'a pitch black wall of death.' 'I was scared to death' At a reunification center set up in Ingram, families cried and cheered as loved ones got off vehicles loaded with evacuees. Two soldiers carried an older woman who could not get down a ladder. Behind her, a woman clutched a small white dog. Later, a girl in a white 'Camp Mystic' T-shirt and white socks stood in a puddle, sobbing in her mother's arms. Barry Adelman, 54, said water pushed everyone in his three-story house into the attic, including his 94-year-old grandmother and 9-year-old grandson. The water started coming through the attic floor before finally receding. 'I was horrified,' he said. '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.' 'No one knew this kind of flood was coming' The forecast had called for rain, with a flood watch upgraded to a warning overnight for at least 30,000 people. The lieutenant governor noted that the potential for heavy rain and flooding covered a large area. Story continues below advertisement 'Everything was done to give them a heads up that you could have heavy rain, and we're not exactly sure where it's going to land,' Patrick said. 'Obviously as it got dark last night, we got into the wee morning of the hours, that's when the storm started to zero in.' Asked about how people were notified in Kerr County so that they could get to safety, Judge Rob Kelly, the county's chief elected official, said: 'We do not have a warning system.' When reporters pushed on why more precautions weren't taken, Kelly said: 'Rest assured, no one knew this kind of flood was coming.' A new flashflood warning was sent out early morning Saturday following the initial disaster, urging residents to seek higher ground. The National Weather Service in Austin/San Antonio issued a Flash Flood Warning for Burnet County in south central Texas, Northwestern Travis County in south central Texas and Northwestern Williamson County in south central Texas. The alert warned residents of dangerous conditions from 5am until 10am CDT. 'The expected rainfall rate is 3 to 6 inches in 1 hour. Additional rainfall amounts of 2 to 5 inches are possible in the warned area. Flash flooding is ongoing or expected to begin shortly,' stated the issued alert. – With files from Prisha Dev
Vancouver Sun
an hour ago
- Vancouver Sun
Desperate search for two dozen missing girls after Texas floods kill at least 24
KERRVILLE, Texas — At least 24 people were killed and another two dozen people were unaccounted for as a frantic search continued early Saturday for survivors after a storm unleashed nearly a foot of rain and sent floodwaters spilling out of the Guadalupe River, sweeping away a girls' summer camp in the Texas Hill Country. The destructive force of the fast-rising waters just before dawn Friday washed out homes and swept away vehicles. There were hundreds of rescues around Kerr County, including at least 167 by helicopter, authorities said. The total number of missing was not known, but the sheriff said between 23 and 25 of them were girls who had been attending Camp Mystic, a Christian summer camp along the river. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. At a news conference late Friday, Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha said 24 people had been confirmed killed. Authorities said 237 people had been recued so far. On social media, parents and families posted desperate pleas for information about loved ones caught in the flood zone. 'The camp was completely destroyed,' said Elinor Lester, 13, one of hundreds of campers at Camp Mystic. 'A helicopter landed and started taking people away. It was really scary.' She said a raging storm woke up her cabin around 1:30 a.m. Friday, and when rescuers arrived, they tied a rope for the girls to hold as the children in her cabin walked across a bridge with floodwaters whipping around the calves and knees. The flooding in the middle of the night on the Fourth of July holiday caught many residents, campers and officials by surprise. Officials defended their preparations for severe weather and their response but said they had not expected such an intense downpour that was, in effect, the equivalent of months' worth of rain for the area. One National Weather Service forecast this week had called for only between 76 to 152 millimetres of rain, said Nim Kidd, the chief of the Texas Division of Emergency Management. 'It did not predict the amount of rain that we saw,' he said. Helicopters, drones used in frantic search for missing A river gauge at Hunt recorded a 6.7 metres rise in about two hours, according to Bob Fogarty, meteorologist with the National Weather Service's Austin/San Antonio office. The gauge failed after recording a level of 9 metres. 'The water's moving so fast, you're not going to recognize how bad it is until it's on top of you,' Fogarty said. On the Kerr County sheriff's office Facebook page, people posted pictures of loved ones and begged for help finding them. At least 400 people were on the ground helping in the response, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said. Nine rescue teams, 14 helicopters and 12 drones were being used, with some people being rescued from trees. 'Pitch black wall of death' In Ingram, Erin Burgess woke to thunder and rain at 3:30 a.m. Just 20 minutes later, water was pouring into her home directly across from the river, she said. She described an agonizing hour clinging to a tree and waiting for the water to recede enough so they could walk up the hill to a neighbor's home. '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. Of her 19-year-old son, Burgess said: 'Thankfully he's over 6 feet tall. That's the only thing that saved me, was hanging on to him.' Matthew Stone, 44, of Kerrville, said police came knocking on doors at 5:30 a.m. but that he had received no warning on his phone. 'We got no emergency alert. There was nothing,' Stone said. Then 'a pitch black wall of death.' 'I was scared to death' At a reunification center set up in Ingram, families cried and cheered as loved ones got off vehicles loaded with evacuees. Two soldiers carried an older woman who could not get down a ladder. Behind her, a woman in a soiled T-shirt and shorts clutched a small white dog. Later, a girl in a white 'Camp Mystic' T-shirt and white socks stood in a puddle, sobbing in her mother's arms. Barry Adelman, 54, said water pushed everyone in his three-story house into the attic, including his 94-year-old grandmother and 9-year-old grandson. The water started coming through the attic floor before finally receding. 'I was horrified,' he said. '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.' 'No one knew this kind of flood was coming' The forecast had called for rain, with a flood watch upgraded to a warning overnight for at least 30,000 people. But totals in some places exceeded expectations, Fogarty said. Patrick noted that the potential for heavy rain and flooding covered a large area. 'Everything was done to give them a heads up that you could have heavy rain, and we're not exactly sure where it's going to land,' Patrick said. 'Obviously as it got dark last night, we got into the wee morning of the hours, that's when the storm started to zero in.' Asked about how people were notified in Kerr County so that they could get to safety, Judge Rob Kelly, the county's chief elected official, said: 'We do not have a warning system.' When reporters pushed on why more precautions weren't taken, Kelly said: 'Rest assured, no one knew this kind of flood was coming.' Popular tourism area prone to flooding The area is known as 'flash flood alley' because of the hills' thin layer of soil, said Austin Dickson, CEO of the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country, which was collecting donations to help nonprofits responding to the disaster. 'When it rains, water doesn't soak into the soil,' Dickson said. 'It rushes down the hill.' River tourism industry is a key part of the Hill Country economy. Well-known, century-old summer camps bring in kids from all over the country, Dickson said. 'It's generally a very tranquil river with really beautiful clear blue water that people have been attracted to for generations,' Dickson said. Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here .
Calgary Herald
an hour ago
- Calgary Herald
Desperate search for two dozen missing girls after Texas floods kill at least 24
KERRVILLE, Texas — At least 24 people were killed and another two dozen people were unaccounted for as a frantic search continued early Saturday for survivors after a storm unleashed nearly a foot of rain and sent floodwaters spilling out of the Guadalupe River, sweeping away a girls' summer camp in the Texas Hill Country. Article content The destructive force of the fast-rising waters just before dawn Friday washed out homes and swept away vehicles. There were hundreds of rescues around Kerr County, including at least 167 by helicopter, authorities said. Article content Article content Article content The total number of missing was not known, but the sheriff said between 23 and 25 of them were girls who had been attending Camp Mystic, a Christian summer camp along the river. Article content Article content On social media, parents and families posted desperate pleas for information about loved ones caught in the flood zone. 'The camp was completely destroyed,' said Elinor Lester, 13, one of hundreds of campers at Camp Mystic. 'A helicopter landed and started taking people away. It was really scary.' Article content She said a raging storm woke up her cabin around 1:30 a.m. Friday, and when rescuers arrived, they tied a rope for the girls to hold as the children in her cabin walked across a bridge with floodwaters whipping around the calves and knees. Article content Article content The flooding in the middle of the night on the Fourth of July holiday caught many residents, campers and officials by surprise. Officials defended their preparations for severe weather and their response but said they had not expected such an intense downpour that was, in effect, the equivalent of months' worth of rain for the area. Article content Article content One National Weather Service forecast this week had called for only between 76 to 152 millimetres of rain, said Nim Kidd, the chief of the Texas Division of Emergency Management. Article content 'It did not predict the amount of rain that we saw,' he said. Article content A river gauge at Hunt recorded a 6.7 metres rise in about two hours, according to Bob Fogarty, meteorologist with the National Weather Service's Austin/San Antonio office. The gauge failed after recording a level of 9 metres.
