Flash floods hit Texas Hill Country: Multiple dead, dozens rescued in overnight deluge; emergency ops underway
Multiple people have died in Texas after heavy rains triggered flash floods, with rescue teams using boats to save those trapped in fast-moving waters on Friday. The flooding impacted riverfront areas near wildlife zones and campgrounds.
Central Kerr county was hit especially hard, with up to 10 inches (25 cm) of rain falling within a few hours overnight. The sudden downpour caused the Guadalupe river to overflow, leading to dangerous flooding.
Judge Rob Kelly, the top elected official in the county, confirmed that there had been fatalities and said dozens of water rescues had taken place. However, he declined to give an exact number, saying authorities are still working to identify the victims.
'Most of them, we don't know who they are,' Kelly said at a press briefing. 'One of them was completely naked, he didn't have any ID on him at all. We're trying to get the identity of these folks, but we don't have it yet.'
Authorities are continuing rescue and recovery efforts as the region remains on alert for further rain.
Officials carried out several rescue operations as emergency services continued their efforts, with some people still missing, according to Kelly.
On Thursday afternoon, a flood watch was issued, warning of possible heavy rainfall of up to 7 inches (17 cm). By night, this alert was upgraded to a flood warning, affecting at least 30,000 people.
When asked about the sudden flash floods overnight, Kelly admitted there was no warning system in place. 'We didn't know this flood was coming,' he said, even as local reporters pointed out earlier alerts and questioned the lack of preparation.
'No one expected a flood of this scale,' Kelly added. 'We experience floods often, but this is the most dangerous river valley in the United States.'
Texas governor Greg Abbott said the state is sending help to flood-affected areas in Hill Country, including Kerrville, Ingram and Hunt.
He urged people to follow instructions from authorities and stay updated with local weather forecasts to avoid driving through flooded roads.
'I urge Texans to heed guidance from state and local officials and monitor local forecasts to avoid driving into flooded areas,' Abbott said in a statement.
The Texas Hill Country, known for its scenic views, rocky terrain, vineyards, and vacation rentals, lies west of the state capital and is a popular summer destination. However, some parts of the region are highly prone to flash floods.
Following the floods, dozens of people took to Facebook, seeking information about their children, nieces, nephews, or relatives who were attending camps or camping in the area over the holiday weekend.
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Economic Times
4 hours ago
- Economic Times
24 dead in Texas floods and more than 20 children missing from a girls summer camp
Torrential rains in Texas Hill Country led to devastating flash floods, claiming 24 lives and leaving many missing, including girls from Camp Mystic. Hundreds were rescued by boat and helicopter as desperate families sought information. The Guadalupe River surged to record levels, overwhelming communities. Residents recounted harrowing escapes, with some finding refuge in trees and attics. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads KERRVILLE, Texas - Months worth of heavy rain fell in a matter of hours on Texas Hill Country, leaving 24 people dead and many more unaccounted for Friday, including more than 20 girls attending a summer camp, as search teams conducted boat and helicopter rescues in fast-moving pleas peppered social media as loved ones sought any information about people caught in the flood zone. At least 10 inches (25 centimeters) of rain poured down overnight in central Kerr County, causing flash flooding of the Guadalupe a news conference late Friday Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha said 24 people had been killed. Authorities said 237 people had been recued so far, including 167 by missing children were attending Camp Mystic, a Christian camp along the Guadalupe River in the small town of Hunt. Elinor Lester, 13, said she and her cabin mates had to be helicoptered to safety.A raging storm woke up her cabin around 1:30 a.m., and when rescuers arrived, Lester said they tied a rope for the girls to hold as the children in her cabin walked across bridge with floodwaters whipping around the calves and knees."The camp was completely destroyed," she said. "A helicopter landed and started taking people away. It was really scary."The situation was still developing and officials said the death toll could change, with rescue operations ongoing for an unspecified total number of were still working to identify the for information after flash flood A river gauge at Hunt recorded a 22 foot rise (6.7 meters) 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 29 and a half feet (9 meters)."The water's moving so fast, you're not going to recognize how bad it is until it's on top of you," Fogarty the Kerr County sheriff's office Facebook page, people posted pictures of loved ones and begged for help finding least 400 people were on the ground helping in the response, Patrick said. Nine rescue teams, 14 helicopters and 12 drones were being used, with some people being rescued from 23 of the roughly 750 girls attending Camp Mystic were among those who were unaccounted for, Patrick crews were doing "whatever we can do to find everyone we can," he said.'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 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."Stone said police used his paddle boat to help rescue a neighbor. He and the rescuers thought they heard someone yelling "help!" from the water but couldn't see anyone, he said.'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 a girl in a white "Camp Mystic" T-shirt and white socks stood in a puddle, sobbing in her mother's 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 trough 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 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 responded: "Rest assured, no one knew this kind of flood was coming.""We have floods all the time," he added. "This is the most dangerous river valley in the United States."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, said Dickson. Well-known, century-old summer camps bring in kids from all over the country, he said. Between Hunt and Ingram are many river homes and cabins for rent."It's generally a very tranquil river with really beautiful clear blue water that people have been attracted to for generations," Dickson said.
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Business Standard
5 hours ago
- Business Standard
At least 13 dead in Texas floods, over 20 children missing from summer camp
Months worth of heavy rain fell in a matter of hours on Texas Hill Country, killing at least 13 people and leaving more than 20 girls attending a summer camp unaccounted for Friday as search teams conducted boat and helicopter rescues in the fast-moving flood water. Desperate pleas peppered social media as loved ones sought any information available about people caught in the flood zone. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said somewhere between 6 and 10 bodies had been found so far in the frantic search for victims. Meanwhile, during a news conference conducted at the same time as Patrick's update, Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha reported that there were 13 deaths from the flooding. At least 10 inches of rain poured down overnight in central Kerr County, causing flash flooding of the Guadalupe River and leading to desperate pleas for information about the missing. Some are adults, some are children, Patrick said during a news conference. Again, we don't know where those bodies came from. Teams conducted dozens of rescues, and emergency responders continued to search for those who were unaccounted for. That includes more than 20 girls missing from summer camps. I'm asking the people of Texas, do some serious praying this afternoon. On-your-knees kind of praying, that we find these young girls, Patrick said. Comments on a Facebook post from the Kerr County sheriff's office were riddled with photos of people in the flood zone. Loved ones posted there, hoping someone could offer an update on the whereabouts of those they hadn't heard from. One woman said she couldn't reach her daughter, who had rented a cabin in Hunt for her husband and two children, and pleaded for someone to post the names of those already evacuated. Judge Rob Kelly, the chief elected official in the county, confirmed fatalities from the flooding and dozens of water rescues so far. He said he was advised not to cite specific numbers and said authorities are still working to identify those whose lives were lost. Most of them, we don't know who they are, Kelly said during a news conference. One of them was completely naked, he didn't have any ID on him at all. We're trying to get the identity of these folks, but we don't have it yet. One family survives a terrifying ordeal Erin Burgess' home sits directly across from the river in the Bumble Bee Hills neighbourhood, west of Ingram. When she woke up to thunder at 3:30 am Friday morning, it was raining pretty heavy, but no big deal, she said. Just 20 minutes later, Burgess said water was coming in through the walls and rushing through the front and back doors. She described an agonizing hour clinging to a tree and waiting for the water to recede enough that they were able to walk up the hill to a neighbour's. 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, becoming emotional. 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. A flood watch issued Thursday afternoon estimated isolated amounts up to 7 inches of rising water. That shifted to a flood warning for at least 30,000 people overnight. When asked about the suddenness of the flash flooding, Kelly said we do not have a warning system and that we didn't know this flood was coming, even as local reporters pointed to the warnings and pushed him for answers about why more precautions weren't taken. Rest assured, no one knew this kind of flood was coming, he said. We have floods all the time. This is the most dangerous river valley in the United States. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said the state was providing resources to Hill Country communities dealing with the flooding, including in Kerrville, Ingram and Hunt. The Texas Hill Country, a scenic and rocky gateway to booming vineyards and vacation rentals, begins west of the state capital and is a popular outdoor summer getaway. Parts of the region are prone to flash flooding. Dozens of people posted on Facebook asking for any information on their children, nieces and nephews attending one of the many camps in the area, or family members that went camping during the holiday weekend. Ingram Fire Department posted a photo of a statement from Camp Mystic, saying the private Christian summer camp for girls experienced catastrophic level floods. Parents with a daughter not accounted for were directly contacted, the camp said. Two other camps on the river, Camp Waldemar and Camp La Junta, said in Instagram posts that all there were safe. 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. 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. Areas east along the Guadalupe River were preparing for their own flooding as the rapid waters rushed downstream from Hunt and Kerrville. In Kendall County, home to the unincorporated community of Comfort, the sheriff's office sounded the alarm. We regret to inform everyone that the flood situation in Comfort is not improving, the post read. We have sounded the flood sirens and urge all residents in low-lying areas of town to evacuate immediately. New Jersey also sees deaths due to severe weather Meanwhile, strong thunderstorms were 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 travelling in during the height of a storm there, 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 cancelled 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. Continuing power outages and downed trees were reported Friday throughout southern New England, where some communities received large amounts of hail. There were reports of cars skidding off the road in northeastern Connecticut. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Mint
5 hours ago
- Mint
Texas flooding: Images surface of rescued Camp Mystic girls as search continues; 13 dead, 20 still missing
Heavy downpours triggered fatal sudden flooding along the Guadalupe River in south-central Texas on Friday, claiming at least 13 individuals dead and causing nearly two dozen girls declared unaccounted for from a Camp Mystic, a summer camp located by the river. The images of rescued girls have surfaced on social media. According to Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, nearly 23 girls participating in it were missing for Friday afternoon. The teams were deployed to find them with various resources like helicopter and boat in the inundation. He said, 'I'm asking the people of Texas, do some serious praying this afternoon — on-your-knees kind of praying — that we find these young girls.' Nine relief teams, 14 helicopters and 12 drones were being utilised to locate them, he added. In a post on X, a user posts an image showcasing two girls together sitting on green canvas seats in what appears to be a rescue helicopter, where both have covered their ears. Another post suggests a group of girls being rescued and sitting in a circle on the floors indoors. 'These girls are rescued and waiting at fire station if anyone knows their families. I'm sure they are trying to contact family but sharing here just in case word of mouth moves faster,' the caption states. The kin of those missing informed on local Facebook groups that safety officials called them to share that their daughters remained unlocated among the debris of washed-away camp cabins and fallen trees, while some expect a hope of their children's evacuation by helicopter, an AP report said. The city manager for Kerrville, the county seat, Dalton Rice mentioned that the severe flooding occurred before sunrise with minimal to no notice, preventing officials from giving prior evacuation instructions as the Guadalupe River quickly surged past the major flood threshold. This happened very quickly, over a very short period of time that could not be predicted, even with radar. This happened within less than a two-hour span," he asserted. The US National Weather Service announced a flash flood emergency for different areas of Kerr County, situated in Texas Hill Country, nearly 65 miles (105 km) northwest of San Antonio after thunderstorms with heavy rainfall that delivered as much as a foot of precipitation, Reuters reported. (With inputs from agencies)
