Latest news with #KatherineFerruzzo
Daily Mail
14-07-2025
- Climate
- Daily Mail
Tragic end to search for Camp Mystic counselor after Texas flood
The search for 19-year-old Camp Mystic counselor Katherine Ferruzzo has come to a heartbreaking end with her remains recovered from the mud-clogged banks of the Guadalupe River. Her body was found on Friday morning, eight days after flash floods turned a summer refuge into a deadly disaster zone. Ferruzzo, a recent high school graduate from Houston, had been missing since the early hours of July 4, when a wall of raging water tore through the all-girls Christian summer camp near Hunt, Texas. The tragedy unfolded in the darkness as chaos broke out, with cabins obliterated, bunks swept away, and dozens of lives from the camp snuffed out. Her family confirmed her death in a solemn statement: 'On Friday, July 11, 2025, Katherine Ferruzzo's remains were found. We are incredibly grateful to all the search and rescue professionals and volunteers who have remained steadfast in their efforts to locate the victims of this tragedy. We would especially like to thank the Texas Rangers.' Ferruzzo is one of at least 27 confirmed dead from the catastrophic flooding that overwhelmed Camp Mystic, and one of 129 people killed in what is now being called the deadliest flash flood event in Texas history. For generations of Texas girls, Camp Mystic has been a beloved summer tradition — a place of faith, friendship, and freedom under the stars. Founded in 1926, the camp has never seen a disaster of this magnitude. Its historic riverside cabins, some nearly a century old, were crushed or swept away by the torrent. Officials say many of the victims were caught in their bunks or separated during efforts to escape. The flood was far more severe than the 100-year event envisioned by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, experts said, and moved so quickly in the middle of the night that it caught many off guard in a county that lacked a warning system. The sheer amount of rain was overwhelming. Former NOAA chief scientist Ryan Maue, a private meteorologist, calculated on July 5 that the storm had dropped 120 billion gallons of water on Kerr County, which received the brunt of the storm. Camp organizers have yet to release a full statement, although several staffers have been working closely with the families of the missing. Ferruzzo had been preparing to begin a degree in education at the University of Texas at Austin, with dreams of becoming a special education teacher. Friends and family described her as kind, selfless, and committed to helping others, especially children with learning differences. Her loved ones are now channeling their grief into a cause she cared about deeply. The Katherine Ferruzzo Legacy Foundation is being established in her honor 'to support those with special needs and learning differences,' the family announced. The July 4 flood began with a wall of water, the result of hours of tropical rainfall that saturated the region overnight. As campers slept in wooden cabins, the Guadalupe River had swelled by 26 feet by 4:30am. The campsites, some of them situated just yards from the river's edge, stood no chance. Survivors have spoken of being jolted awake by the raging water, then running blindly through the darkness as cabins collapsed around them. Search teams worked for days through tangled debris, uprooted trees, and collapsed structures, deploying boats, drones, cadaver dogs, and helicopters. But the sheer force of the flood and the river's strong current has made recovery agonizingly slow. Ferruzzo was among the last missing campers still unaccounted for before her body was found. Across Texas, the death toll has continued to rise, with dozens still unaccounted for, many presumed drowned. Entire towns across the Hill Country have been ravaged, with roads remaining impassable, and in some counties the power has yet to be restored. Governor Greg Abbott declared a state of emergency days ago, calling the disaster 'a once-in-a-century flood event.' In Kerr County alone, more than 80 structures were destroyed, with families displaced indefinitely. On Sunday, more heavy rains in Texas paused the weeklong search for victims. Officials warned that the downpours could again cause waterways to surge. It was the first time a new round of severe weather had paused the search since the July Fourth floods. In Kerrville, where local officials have come under scrutiny about the warnings given to residents, authorities went door-to-door to some homes after midnight early on Sunday to alert people that flooding was again possible. Authorities also pushed alerts to the phones of those in the area. Ingram Fire Department officials ordered search crews to immediately evacuate the Guadalupe River corridor in Kerr County until further notice, warning the potential for a flash flood is high. Search-and-rescue efforts are expected to resume on Monday, depending on river flow, fire department spokesman Brian Lochte said. 'We're working with a few crews and airboats and SAR (search-and-rescue) boats just in case,' Lochte said. Gov. Greg Abbott said on X that the state was making rescues in San Saba, Lampasas, and Schleicher counties and that evacuations were taking place in a handful of others. The latest round of flooding damaged about 100 homes and knocked down untold lengths of cattle fencing, said Ashley Johnson, CEO of the Hill Country Community Action Association, a San Saba-based nonprofit. 'Anything you can imagine in a rural community was damaged,' she said. 'Our blessing is it was daylight and we knew it was coming.' With more rain on the way, county officials ordered everyone living in flood-prone areas near the San Saba River to evacuate. Johnson said people were being moved to the San Saba Civic Center, which has become a safe, high place for people to receive aid and shelter. 'Everyone is in some way personally affected by this,' she said. 'Everyone is just doing what they can to help their neighbors.' The weather system brought multiple rounds of heavy rains and slow-moving storms across a widespread area, pushing rivers and streams over their banks. Heading into the afternoon and evening, the heaviest rains were expected along the I-35 corridor and eastwards, said meteorologist Patricia Sanchez from the National Weather Service's Fort Worth office.
Daily Mail
13-07-2025
- Climate
- Daily Mail
Tragic end to search for missing Camp Mystic counselor Katherine Ferruzzo after Texas floods wiped out cabins
The search for 19-year-old Camp Mystic counselor Katherine Ferruzzo has come to a heartbreaking end with her remains recovered from the mud-clogged banks of the Guadalupe River. Her body was found on Friday morning, eight days after flash floods turned a summer refuge into a deadly disaster zone. Ferruzzo, a recent high school graduate from Houston, had been missing since the early hours of July 4, when a wall of raging water tore through the all-girls Christian summer camp near Hunt, Texas. The tragedy unfolded in the darkness as chaos broke out with cabins were obliterated and bunks swept away and dozens of lives from the camp snuffed out. Her family confirmed her death in a solemn statement: 'On Friday, July 11, 2025, Katherine Ferruzzo's remains were found. We are incredibly grateful to all the search and rescue professionals and volunteers who have remained steadfast in their efforts to locate the victims of this tragedy. We would especially like to thank the Texas Rangers.' Ferruzzo is one of at least 27 confirmed dead from the catastrophic flooding that overwhelmed Camp Mystic, and one of 129 people killed in what is now being called the deadliest flash flood event in Texas history. For generations of Texas girls, Camp Mystic has been a beloved summer tradition - a place of faith, friendship, and freedom under the stars. Founded in 1926, the camp has never seen a disaster of this magnitude. Its historic riverside cabins, some nearly a century old, were crushed or swept away by the torrent. Officials say many of the victims were caught in their bunks or separated during efforts to escape. The flood was far more severe than the 100-year event envisioned by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, experts said, and moved so quickly in the middle of the night that it caught many off guard in a county that lacked a warning system. The sheer amount of rain was overwhelming. Former NOAA chief scientist Ryan Maue, a private meteorologist, calculated on July 5 that the storm had dropped 120 billion gallons of water on Kerr County, which received the brunt of the storm. Camp organizers have yet to release a full statement, although several staffers have been working closely with the families of the missing. Ferruzzo had been preparing to begin a degree in education at the University of Texas at Austin, with dreams of becoming a special education teacher. Friends and family described her as kind, selfless, and committed to helping others, especially children with learning differences. Her loved ones are now channeling their grief into a cause she cared about deeply. The 13 girls and two counselors, including Ferruzzo were staying in Camp Mystic's Bubble Inn cabin when the catastrophic floods hit on the morning of July 4 The Katherine Ferruzzo Legacy Foundation is being established in her honor 'to support those with special needs and learning differences,' the family announced. The July 4 flood began with a wall of water, the result of hours of tropical rainfall that saturated the region overnight. As campers slept in wooden cabins the Guadalupe River had swelled by 26 feet by 4:30am. The campsites, some of them situated just yards from the river's edge, stood no chance. Survivors have spoken of being jolted awake by the raging water, then running blindly through the darkness as cabins collapsed around them. Search teams worked for days through tangled debris, uprooted trees, and collapsed structures deploying boats, drones, cadaver dogs, and helicopters. But the sheer force of the flood and the river's strong current has made recovery agonizingly slow. Ferruzzo was among the last missing campers still unaccounted for before her body was found. Across Texas, the death toll has continued to rise with dozens still unaccounted for, many presumed drowned. Entire towns across the Hill Country have been ravaged with roads remaining impassable, and in some counties the power has yet to be restored. Governor Greg Abbott declared a state of emergency days ago, calling the disaster 'a once-in-a-century flood event.' In Kerr County alone, more than 80 structures were destroyed with families displaced indefinitely. On Sunday, more heavy rains in Texas paused the weeklong search for victims officials warned that the downpours could again cause waterways to surge. It was the first time a new round of severe weather had paused the search since the July Fourth floods. In Kerrville, where local officials have come under scrutiny about the warnings given to residents, authorities went door-to-door to some homes after midnight early on Sunday to alert people that flooding was again possible. Authorities also pushed alerts to the phones of those in the area. Ingram Fire Department officials ordered search crews to immediately evacuate the Guadalupe River corridor in Kerr County until further notice, warning the potential for a flash flood is high. Search-and-rescue efforts are expected to resume on Monday, depending on river flow, fire department spokesman Brian Lochte said. 'We're working with a few crews and airboats and SAR (search-and-rescue) boats just in case,' Lochte said. Gov. Greg Abbott said on X that the state was making rescues in San Saba, Lampasas and Schleicher counties and that evacuations were taking place in a handful of others. The latest round of flooding damaged about 100 homes and knocked down untold lengths of cattle fencing, said Ashley Johnson, CEO of the Hill Country Community Action Association, a San Saba-based nonprofit. 'Anything you can imagine in a rural community was damaged,' she said. 'Our blessing is it was daylight and we knew it was coming.' With more rain on the way, county officials ordered everyone living in flood-prone areas near the San Saba River to evacuate. Johnson said people were being moved to the San Saba Civic Center, which has become a safe, high place for people to receive aid and shelter. 'Everyone is in some way personally affected by this,' she said. 'Everyone is just doing what they can to help their neighbors.' The weather system brought multiple rounds of heavy rains and slow-moving storms across a widespread area, pushing rivers and streams over their banks. Heading into the afternoon and evening, the heaviest rains were expected along the I-35 corridor and eastwards, said meteorologist Patricia Sanchez from the National Weather Service's Fort Worth office.
Yahoo
13-07-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Missing Camp Mystic Counselor Katherine Ferruzzo's Remains Found 7 Days After Texas Floods
Katherine Ferruzzo, a Camp Mystic counselor, was found dead on Friday, July 11, her family confirmed in a statement The 19-year-old was one of at least 27 campers and counselors killed in the Texas floods over the Fourth of July weekend "We are incredibly grateful to all the search and rescue professionals and volunteers," Ferruzzo's family said in a statement, per NBC 5The remains of a Camp Mystic counselor who died during the Texas floods has been found. Katherine Ferruzzo's family confirmed that her remains were found on Friday, July 11, in a statement obtained by NBC 5. "We are incredibly grateful to all the search and rescue professionals and volunteers who have remained steadfast in their efforts to locate the victims of this tragedy. We would especially like to thank the Texas Rangers," the family said, per the outlet. Officials previously announced that at least 27 campers and counselors died at the Christian summer camp. Its location in Kerr County was the hardest-hit region during the July 4 floods. Ferruzzo family statement revealed that she had recently graduated from high school and was planning to attend the University of Texas in Austin to study education. The late counselor hoped to become a special education teacher. She was 19 years old and had a strong philanthropic presence in Houston, according to the Houston Chronicle. The Ferruzzo family will be launching a charitable foundation in her memory. "The Katherine Ferruzzo Legacy Foundation is being established to honor Katherine and her compassion for those with special needs and learning differences. We will share a link with donation details in the coming days," the family said in the statement, per NBC 5. "We would like to thank the Houston and Camp Mystic communities for their unwavering support and for allowing us to mourn this tragedy in private," the statement continued. "We are heartbroken for the other families and pray for all who have been affected. " The destructive and deadly floodwaters in Texas was spurred by nearly unprecedented rainfall that swelled the Guadalupe River. The death toll has risen steadily since the disaster and now sits at at least 129, with over a hundred people still missing, according to USA Today. Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. The grandmother of 9-year-old camper Jane Hunt recently remembered her granddaughter in an exclusive interview with PEOPLE. Margaret Hunt described Jane as a "brilliant" and "precocious" child who 'loved life" and "loved everybody." She also told PEOPLE her granddaughter was a big theater fan, and a necklace she gifted the child following a performance helped the family identify Jane after her death. 'She was in a play in May, and that's when I gave her the little Janie necklace that she had on when they found the body," Margaret said. "That's how they knew it was Janie. She had on a necklace that, in beads, spelled out [her name]." Read the original article on People
Hindustan Times
09-07-2025
- General
- Hindustan Times
Who is Katherine Ferruzzo? Camp Mystic counselor remains missing after devastating Texas flood
Katherine Ferruzzo, a counsellor at Camp Mystic in Hunt, Texas, remains missing after a deadly flood swept through the region on the Fourth of July weekend. A search and rescue team looks for people along the Guadalupe River near Camp Mystic in Hunt, Texas, on July 7, 2025, following severe flash flooding that occurred during the July 4 holiday weekend. (Photo by RONALDO SCHEMIDT / AFP)(AFP) Ferruzzo was at Camp Mystic with several other students from Spring Branch ISD, including Wilchester Elementary student Molly DeWitt, who was also still missing as of Tuesday. Over the weekend, DeWitt's school held a tribute in her honour, tying green ribbons around trees on campus, per Houston Chronicle. 'It is with immeasurable sadness that we share the tragic Texas Hill Country floods in recent days have deeply impacted several of our Spring Branch ISD families as their children have been confirmed to have passed away or remain missing,' the district said. ALSO READ| Did Cindy Steinberg call Camp Mystic missing girls 'future fascists'? Fact-checking Grok's claim 'Your outpouring of love and support has been a source of strength and compassion and reflects the deep caring nature of our community.' Who is Katherine Ferruzzo? Ferruzzo, a Memorial High School graduate, helped to organise the first-ever Unity Game at the school, a unique event that provided disabled students with an opportunity to play football, cheer on the sidelines, and march in the band together with the rest of the students. By the time she was a junior, Ferruzzo had already volunteered with multiple Houston-area organizations focused on helping children and people with special needs. Her service included time with Gigi's Playhouse, Miracle League, Camp Acorn, and Camp Briarwood. She then pursued a degree in early childhood education at the University of Texas at Austin, where she had enrolled as an incoming freshman. Sadly, she's the only counselor still unaccounted for after flash floods ripped through Kerr County during the early morning hours of Independence Day, killing at least 87 people and leaving many more missing. 'Katherine has a fierce and loving spirit, and we have no doubt she did all she could to save the lives of the girls in her cabin,' her family said in a statement, per the Houston Chronicle. ALSO READ| Texas floods: Camp Mystic girls seen in video happily camping, posing for pics hours before tragedy Notably, another counselor, Chloe Childress, died in the flood while reportedly helping others to safety. 'The counselors were heroes and saved so many lives putting their campers before their own,' Camp Mystic program director Elizabeth Sweet said. Ferruzzo was active in the student council and a member of the National Charity League. She also worked as a teacher aide in Spring Branch ISD elementary schools, supporting students with special needs through the 'Grow Your Own' Future Teacher Scholarship Program.
Daily Mail
08-07-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
Texas flooding rescue effort takes grimmest turn yet as death toll soars past 100
Rescue efforts to find survivors in the aftermath of flash floods in Texas were shifting toward a recovery mission as hopes that anyone would be found alive began to fade. As the death toll surpassed 100 amid fears of worsening weather, Governor Greg Abbott vowed to stop at nothing to find every single one of the dozens still unaccounted for. But first responders have been confronted with the sobering reality that as the search enters a fifth day, finding survivors is growing increasingly unlikely. National Association for Search and Rescue executive director Chris Boyer told the New York Times it is 'a very personal decision by that community and the community leaders about when to start discussing recovery.' He added: 'You don't want to start using the word "recovery" too soon. But you also don't want to give false hope.' He said that the reality is 'you've got to get to those folks quick,' in a flooding scenario. 'With floods, you don't typically find a lot of people alive.' Officials confirmed 104 people had died in the Fourth of July holiday weekend tragedy, including 27 girls and counselors from the all-girls Christian Camp Mystic. At least 10 campers and one 19-year-old counselor, Katherine Ferruzzo, remain unaccounted for as the camp urges Camp Mystic families to 'continue to pray.' These families on Friday received an extraordinary note in the midst of the tragedy telling them 'if your daughter is not accounted for you have been notified,' the Wall Street Journal reported. 'If you have not been personally contacted then your daughter is accounted for.' The once-in-a-generation deluge swept away cabins housing campers aged between eight and 10 which were situated closest to the Guadalupe River. The river flooded and surged by up to 30 feet above its usual water level in the early hours of Friday as the girls slept, giving them no opportunity to save themselves. The raging flash floods — among the nation's worst in decades — slammed into riverside camps and homes before daybreak, pulling sleeping people out of their cabins, tents and trailers and dragging them for miles past floating tree trunks and automobiles. Some survivors were found clinging to trees. Piles of twisted trees sprinkled with mattresses, refrigerators, coolers and canoes now litter the riverbanks. Search-and-rescue teams used heavy equipment near Kerrville to remove large branches while volunteers covered in mud sorted through chunks of debris, piece by piece. According to Amy Hudson, a former camper and staff member who spent 14 years at Mystic beginning in 1980, staff were given pre-camp training where they were educated about flooding. This training would take place at the beginning of each camp season, and she recalled the longtime maintenance man, the late J.C. Mattox, would stand watch during a storm to monitor the height of the river. And while there has also been a risk of flooding during heavy rainfall in the rocky terrain surrounding the camp, it has rarely posed a significant threat to the camp or campers. In 1932, Camp Mystic was forced to close temporarily when floods destroyed cottages at nearby camps, and in 1987 tragedy struck a nearby camp, killing 10 teenagers. A year later, Camp Mystic delayed the arrival of four busloads full of campers after a bridge was flooded, but by 1990, owner Richard 'Dick' Eastland was praising the new safety measures put in place to counter the flood dangers. The flood warning system at the time sent alerts to beepers during a crisis, and he said: 'With this new system, we should gain more time. The river is beautiful, but you have to respect it.' The beloved 70-year-old 'camp dad' died trying to save the young girls in his care. In fact, stories of minor floods and warnings have passed down through generations of campers as legends, lore and nostalgic memories of some of their favorite camp moments. In 2018, Camp Mystic shared video of minor flooding at the site, captioned: 'A little flooding on the bridge today!! Rain days at camp are the best.' One past attendee indicated the video was nostalgic, writing: 'I'll never forget when we got stuck on senior hill one year due to flooding and Criders had to bring all of senior hill hamburgers for lunch!' Another added: 'Making me miss camp!' A third said it reminded her of the devastation of the deadly Tropical Storm Amelia in 1978, recalling: 'I was in that flood of 78 hill was stranded and we had to boat over food to them! What an adventure!! Another woman tagged three friends she once camped with, asking: 'Anyone want some cereal from the shed?' One of the women responded saying she 'still gets nightmares.' Kerr County officials had contemplated in 2017 installing a flood warning system along the river's 'Flash Flood Alley' - but ultimately determined it was too expensive. The county lost out on a bid for a $1million grant to fund the project, and despite having an annual budget of $67million, decided not to pay for it itself. Then commissioner Tom Moser said 'it was probaby just, I had to say the word, priorities. Trying not to raise taxes.' Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly, the county's top elected official, said the flood warning system along the river would have functioned like a tornado warning siren. It was considered before he was elected, but the idea never got off the ground because of the expense. 'We've looked into it before … The public reeled at the cost,' Kelly said. Both Lainey Landry (left) and Wynne Naylor (right) tragically died while they were at the summer camp Critics said it may not have done the girls any good, particularly if they weren't educated about the warning sirens and how to respond. Given the tragedy happened in the dead of night, questions have also been raised about whether the campers and their counselors would have awoken to the sound of the alarm. The brave teenage Camp Mystic counselors who were running the operation when tragedy struck sprung into action as soon as it became clear that the floodwaters were rising at a rapid rate. Paloma Puente, 19, who was enjoying her first summer as a counselor when she was alerted to the danger. She and some other counselors led 17 young girls, many of whom were terrified and screaming in the darkness, out of their cabin as it became inundated with water. The group went 'through windows, through the chest high water,' a friend of Puente's recalled. 'Paloma didn't stop until she knew every single one of her girls was okay.' And Holly Kate Hurley, 19, recalled the heartbreaking scene that followed as parents tried to reunite with their daughters. 'Seeing little girls run to their parents and just hug them and cry, and also just seeing some parents who were looking for their little girls and they weren't there... But, that's just a sight I don't think I'll ever forget,' she told Fox News. 'I was with my campers in the middle of the night, it was about 1.30 in the morning. And rain just kind of started coming through our windows. I woke my girls up, told them to close the windows and then the power just went out, all the fans turned off, running water didn't work,' she said. She added: 'In the morning, they gathered all the counselors that were at Cyprus Lake and they told us that two of the cabins with the seven-year-old girls were wiped away and all these girls were missing. 'And we went back to our cabins and tried to keep up good spirits with these young girls. I think I was just in shock.' Sixteen-year-old Callie McAlary said her first instinct as the waters began rising was to attach her nametag to the clothes she was wearing. 'You have kids running just trying to get to other cabins, trying to get to safety. In my head, I was saying if something does happen and I do get swept away at least I'll have my name on my body.' A heartbreaking photo taken at the beginning of the week showed an entire cabin of girls and counselors who were washed away in the horrific floods. The 13 girls and two counselors were staying in Camp Mystic's Bubble Inn cabin, which, alongside the Twins cabin, housed the youngest of the girls, aged eight to 10. The cabins were less than 500 feet from the river and thus took in water from two directions - the Guadalupe river and a creek nearby, making the girls' escape particularly challenging. Search efforts will continue until all of the remaining bodies have been recovered, Governor Abbott said. 'Texas will not stop until every missing person is found,' Abbott said in a statement. 'Texas is working tirelessly to assist local officials with recovery and rescue operations.' He said the state had deployed over 1,750 personnel and 975 vehicles and pieces of equipment to assistin the rescue efforts. More than 20 different state agencies are collaborating across the flood-hit regions. But he warned 'Texans should be weather aware.. Heavy rain continues to be a threat.' He said the National Weather Service is forecasting heavy rain with the potential to cause flash flooding across already ravaged Central Texas and the Hill Country 'over the next couple of days.' Authorities vowed that one of the next steps will be investigating whether enough warnings were issued and why some camps did not evacuate or move to higher ground in areas long vulnerable to flooding. Former federal officials and experts had warned for months that Trump's deep staffing cuts to the National Weather Service could endanger lives. The weather service came under fire from local officials who criticized what they described as inadequate forecasts, though most in the Republican-controlled state stopped short of blaming Trump's cuts. Democrats, meanwhile, wasted little time in linking the staff reductions to the disaster. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer demanded that the administration conduct an inquiry into whether staffing shortages contributed to 'the catastrophic loss of life' in Texas. The NWS office responsible for that region had five staffers on duty as thunderstorms formed over Texas Thursday evening, the usual number for an overnight shift when severe weather is expected. Trump countered any suggestion his cuts were to blame, insisting the raging waters were 'a thing that happened in seconds. No one expected it. Nobody saw it.' 'This is a hundred-year catastrophe, and it's just so horrible to watch,' he said. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt slammed Democrats trying to politicize the tragedy as rescue operations were still underway. 'Many Democrat-elected officials are trying to turn this into a political game, and it is not,' she said. 'This is a national tragedy, and the administration is treating it as such. Blaming President Trump for these floods is a depraved lie, and it serves no purpose during this time of national mourning.' But Louis Uccellini, a meteorologist who served as NWS director under three presidents, including during Trump's first term, had previously warned: 'This situation is getting to the point where something could break. 'The people are being tired out, working through the night and then being there during the day because the next shift is short staffed. Anything like that could create a situation in which important elements of forecasts and warnings are missed.'
