Some 27 people, including nine children, have been confirmed dead after flash floods in central Texas, authorities said on Saturday, as rescuers continued a frantic search for survivors including dozens still missing from a girls' summer camp.
The sheriff's office in Kerr County, Texas said more than 800 people had been evacuated from the region as flood waters receded in the area around the Guadalupe River, about 85 miles (137 km) northwest of San Antonio.
"We will not stop until every single person is found," Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha said at a news conference.
At least 23 to 25 people from the Camp Mystic summer camp were missing, most of them reported to be young girls. The river waters rose 29 feet rapidly near the camp.
The US National Weather Service said that the flash flood emergency has largely ended for Kerr County, the epicenter of the flooding, following thunderstorms that dumped as much as a foot of rain early on Friday. A flood watch, however, remained in effect until 7 pm for the broader region.
Kerr County sits in the Texas Hill Country, a rural area known for its rugged terrain, historic towns and other tourist attractions.
Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick said up to 500 rescue workers were searching for an unknown number of people who were still missing, including many who had come to the area for an Independence Day celebration by the river.
“We don't know how many people were in tents on the side, in small trailers by the side, in rented homes by the side, because it was going to be the Fourth of July holiday," he said on Fox News Live.
US President Donald Trump said the federal government is working with state and local officials to respond to the flooding. "Melania and I are praying for all of the families impacted by this horrible tragedy. Our Brave First Responders are on site doing what they do best," he said on social media.
Photo: Reuters
State emergency management officials had warned as early as Thursday that west and central Texas faced heavy rains and flash flood threats "over the next couple days," citing National Weather Service forecasts ahead of the holiday weekend.
But the weather forecasts in question "did not predict the amount of rain that we saw," W. Nim Kidd, director of the Texas Division of Emergency Management, told a news conference on Friday night.
July Fourth fireworks displays ended up being canceled in flood-stricken communities throughout the region, including Kerrville, where the waterfront site for Friday night's planned US.Independence Day celebration was submerged by the rain-swollen river.
At Friday night's briefing, Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha said 24 flood-related fatalities had been confirmed, up from 13 tallied earlier in the day.
One more person found dead in neighboring Kendall County was not confirmed to be a flood-related casualty, Leitha said.
Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick said on Friday afternoon that authorities were searching for 23 girls listed as missing from among more than 750 children at summer camp sites along the banks of the Guadalupe River when the area was inundated by floodwaters at around 4 a.m. local time.
The missing campers had all been attending Camp Mystic, a private Christian summer camp for girls.
"We're praying for all those missing to be found alive," Patrick said.
It was not clear whether anyone unaccounted for might have ended up among the deceased victims tallied countywide by the sheriff.
Otherwise, all other campers were safe, authorities said, with campers being evacuated throughout the day.
"Everybody is doing everything in their power to get these kids out," Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly, the top local elected official, had said at a news briefing on the disaster hours earlier.
Kelly said a number of scattered residential subdivisions, recreational vehicle parks and campgrounds were hit hard.
Pressed by reporters why more precautions were not taken with stormy weather in the forecast, Kelly insisted a disaster of such magnitude was unforeseen.
"We have floods all the time. This is the most dangerous river valley in the United States," Kelly said. "We had no reason to believe this
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