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Flash Floods Devastate Texas Summer Camp, Killing at Least 82 and Leaving Dozens Missing
Flash floods at a Texas summer camp killed at least 82 people, including 28 children, as search efforts continue for the missing amid rising questions about emergency preparedness.
KERRVILLE, TEXAS - JULY 04: Trees emerge from flood waters along the Guadalupe River on July 4, 2025 in Kerrville, Texas. Heavy rainfall caused flooding along the Guadalupe River in central Texas with multiple fatalities reported. (Photo by Eric Vryn/Getty Images)
Families combed through waterlogged debris and empty cabins at Camp Mystic on Sunday after devastating flash floods ripped through the Texas Hill Country, killing at least 82 people and leaving dozens more missing, including 10 girls and a counselor from the all-girls summer camp.
Rescuers faced challenging terrain, high water, and dangerous wildlife—including water moccasins—as they continued searching for the missing. Texas Governor Greg Abbott confirmed 41 people remain unaccounted for across the state. In Kerr County, where Camp Mystic is located, authorities have recovered 68 bodies, including 28 children, according to Sheriff Larry Leitha.
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Sheriff Leitha pledged that the search will continue until “everybody is found.” Ten additional deaths have been reported in the counties of Travis, Burnet, Kendall, Tom Green, and Williamson, with officials warning that the toll is likely to rise. Col. Freeman Martin of the Texas Department of Public Safety emphasized the urgency as more rainfall is expected into Tuesday.
As families were allowed to survey the damaged campgrounds, emotional scenes unfolded. One man searched the riverbank for missing loved ones, while others carried away salvaged belongings like bells, footlockers, and mattresses. At one cabin, a woman and teenage girl sobbed and embraced among the wreckage.
Search crews using heavy equipment cleared tree trunks and debris from waterways. More than 850 people were rescued in the first 36 hours after the floods, with helicopters, boats, and drones aiding the efforts. Volunteers, despite warnings, joined the search along the riverbanks.
Questions are mounting about whether adequate warnings were issued ahead of the disaster. The region, known as “flash flood alley,” experienced water levels rising 26 feet in just 45 minutes early Friday morning. President Donald Trump declared a major disaster in Kerr County on Sunday, activating FEMA support, and said he would visit the region Friday.
Camp Mystic, located along the Guadalupe River, is one of many century-old youth camps popular in the area, especially during the Independence Day holiday. Survivors described harrowing moments—being swept away, clinging to trees, or trapped in attics. At Camp Mystic, a group of girls was led to safety using a rope across a bridge as water surged around them.
Among the dead are an 8-year-old girl from Mountain Brook, Alabama, and a camp director from a nearby facility. Two sisters from Dallas remain missing after their cabin was swept away; their parents were safe, but their grandparents are unaccounted for.
Despite flash flood watches issued by the National Weather Service and early warnings Thursday and Friday, the severity of the storm caught many by surprise. Nearby youth camps including Mo-Ranch and Camps Rio Vista and Sierra Vista had posted updates indicating weather monitoring but were overwhelmed by the intensity of the flooding.
Governor Abbott declared Sunday a day of prayer for Texas and its communities, urging citizens to pray for the lost, the missing, the rescuers, and the recovery.
In Rome, Pope Leo XIV offered condolences and prayers for the victims, speaking in English at his Sunday blessing and calling special attention to the families affected, particularly those who lost children at summer camps.
Kerrville City Manager Dalton Rice said the city would conduct a thorough review of the emergency response, including the effectiveness of public alerts. President Trump, asked whether he still plans to dismantle FEMA, said the focus for now is on recovery. When questioned about reinstating federal meteorologists cut during recent spending reductions, he responded, “I would think not. This was a thing that happened in seconds. Nobody expected it. Nobody saw it.”
