24 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, 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 floodwaters.
Desperate 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 River.
At a news conference late on Friday, Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha said 24 people had been killed. The authorities said 237 people had been rescued so far, including 167 by helicopter.
The 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 am, 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 missing.
Authorities were still working to identify the dead.
A river gauge at Hunt recorded a 22-foot 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 29 and a half feet.
“The water’s moving so fast, you’re not going to recognise 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, Patrick said. Nine rescue teams, 14 helicopters and 12 drones were being used, with some people being rescued from trees.
About 23 of the roughly 750 girls attending Camp Mystic were among those who were unaccounted for, Patrick said.
Search crews were doing “whatever we can do to find everyone we can,” he said.
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