TX TX-Hunt, Overnight flooding at Camp Mystic, all girls camp. Unknown number of missing. July 4, 2025

[IceIce9]

https://www.cnn.com/weather/live-news/texas-flooding-camp-mystic-07-06-25-hnk

 

[imstilla.grandma]

“It is our prayer that those impacted by the floods will find the strength to rebuild,” adding, “We pledge to be with the people in these challenging circumstances. Let us answer Christ’s call to love one another.”

Pope Leo: We are praying for victims of Texas floods - Vatican News

Following the Angelus on Sunday, Pope Leo expresses “sincere condolences” to all those who lost loved ones in devastating flash floods in Texas.

www.vaticannews.va

 

[imstilla.grandma]

A man looks out at flooding caused by a flash flood in Kerrville, Texas

Around 3:30 a.m. the Kerrville City Manager Dalton Rice said he was out for an early morning jog along the Guadalupe River and saw “not a drop of rain,” according to Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who recounted his conversation with the city manager. Rice added that he left around 4 a.m. when “there was very light rain...We did not see any signs of the river rising at that time.”

At 4:06 a.m. the National Weather Service Austin/San Antonio posted on X: “A very dangerous flash flooding event is ongoing.” It ended: “Turn Around, Don’t Drown!”

Then, at 5:15 a.m. the National Weather Service San Angelo posted on X that there was a flash flood emergency. The Austin/San Antonio office posted on its X account about the emergency at 5:23 a.m. This type of alert is “exceedingly rare” and used when there is a “severe threat to human life and catastrophic damage,” according to the National Weather Service.

Here’s a timeline of the catastrophic Texas floods | Houston Public Media

NPR has compiled a timeline of when local, state and federal officials posted warnings on social media as well as the timeline of events as presented by local officials.

www.houstonpublicmedia.org

 

[iamshadow21]

What an awful, awful tragedy. I hope those searching stay safe, and that there'll be some kind of mental health support in place for them

As heartless as it feels to mention money at a time like this, as far as I can tell, the demographic for Camp Mystic campers skews to high income, upper crust society. The families of the survivors from there should be able to afford mental health care and support if they need it.

The supports for people doing search and rescue and other first responders are far more tenuous, if they exist at all. They're on a much lower income, if they're not just straight up volunteers. They're going to be seeing a lot of death and devastation over the days and weeks to come, and a lot of the bodies they're going to be finding are going to be very young children. That takes a toll on anyone, regardless of how long they've been doing the job.

I think the spokesperson vowing to find every single missing child shouldn't have said that. I winced when I read it. It's highly unlikely that every person will be found, even if the best efforts are extended weeks into the future. Flood waters take, and they don't always give back what they take. That's the reality of this kind of disaster. By promising not to stop, he's putting unfair pressure on the searchers and giving families and the community unreasonable expectations of what is actually, realistically possible. And that can compound the trauma everyone affected is left with.

MOO

 

[Betty P]

It sounds like there were problems having local staff who could implement an early evacuation plan.

Kerr County also doesn't have an early warning system because they're too expensive and voters don't want to pay for one.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/05/us/politics/texas-floods-warnings-vacancies.html?smid=url-share

The National Weather Service’s San Angelo office, which is responsible for some of the areas hit hardest by Friday’s flooding, was missing a senior hydrologist, staff forecaster and meteorologist in charge, according to Tom Fahy, the legislative director for the National Weather Service Employees Organization, the union that represents Weather Service workers.

The Weather Service’s nearby San Antonio office, which covers other areas hit by the floods, also had significant vacancies, including a warning coordination meteorologist and science officer, Mr. Fahy said. Staff members in those positions are meant to work with local emergency managers to plan for floods, including when and how to warn local residents and help them evacuate.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

Julian Ryan
"I’m sorry, I’m not going to make it. I love y’all."
​

Family Reveals Heartbreaking Final Words Said by Dad, 27, Before He Died in Texas Flooding Tragedy

A family has revealed a young dad's heartbreaking final words before he was killed in the Texas flooding tragedy on July 4. 'I’m sorry, I’m not going to make it. I love y’all,' Julian Ryan told his wife Christinia Wilson, their children and his mother.

people.com

“He had lost so much blood and knew he wasn’t going to make it,”
‘I love you. I’m so sorry.’ In minutes, he was gone.”

“He was the best father, and was always such a happy person who was never above helping people, no matter what it cost,” “He died trying to save us.”

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/05/us/texas-flood-victims.html

 

[imstilla.grandma]

Blair and Brooke Harber​

Two young sisters, Blair and Brooke Harber, were staying in a cabin along the Guadalupe River with their grandparents when their cabin was washed away in the flood, according to the Rev. Joshua J. Whitfield, the pastor of their Dallas church, St. Rita Catholic Community. Blair, 13, was headed to eighth grade at St. Rita’s school. Brooke, 11, was bound for sixth there.

Both girls died and their grandparents are still missing, the pastor said on Saturday in a letter he sent to parishioners. Their parents — Annie Harber, a first and second grade instructional specialist at St. Rita’s, and RJ Harber — were staying in another cabin and are safe, he said.

“In moments like this, we are reminded of life’s fragility and the lasting power of faith,” Rev. Whitfield wrote in his letter, adding, “We will honor Blair and Brooke’s lives, the light they shared, and the joy they brought to everyone who knew them.”

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/05/us/texas-flood-victims.html

 

[K9Enzo]

A flash flood that has a 26-30 foot rise in the water within an hour between 4am -6am is beyond devastating. Water is so unforgiving.

What a sobering mission that’s underway. Natural landmarks that can guide search strategy in many cases gone, unstable terrain, massive debris, standing water (contaminated), shifting mud. Bodies carried for miles in many cases. It’s not just skill driving these SAR teams, it’s purpose.

I heard an interview where a dad saw what he thought was a mannequin but it was a child. This is such a common reaction when someone sees a deceased person where they are not supposed to be. The mind doesn’t register it.

My heart is so heavy for these families. Many of the victims wanting to enjoy the outdoors away with friends. Many of us I’m sure can remember the excitement of summer camp as a child. There are also people missing from their RV’s in different locations. Devastating. imo

 

[iamshadow21]

A flash flood that has a 26-30 foot rise in the water within an hour between 4am -6am is beyond devastating. Water is so unforgiving.

What a sobering mission that’s underway. Natural landmarks that can guide search strategy in many cases gone, unstable terrain, massive debris, standing water (contaminated), shifting mud. Bodies carried for miles in many cases. It’s not just skill driving these SAR teams, it’s purpose.

I heard an interview where a dad saw what he thought was a mannequin but it was a child. This is such a common reaction when someone sees a deceased person where they are not supposed to be. The mind doesn’t register it.

My heart is so heavy for these families. Many of the victims wanting to enjoy the outdoors away with friends. Many of us I’m sure can remember the excitement of summer camp as a child. There are also people missing from their RV’s in different locations. Devastating. imo

Very skilled, very dangerous work, with no guarantees of a successful recovery, let alone a successful rescue of a living person.

Flooded waterways can take a person and not give them up, even when they know where someone entered the water. Sometimes the person is found, but maybe not until years after their death.

I live in a country that's on fire about as often as it's under water, and live close to an area that has had about a dozen 'fifty year flood' events in the last ten years. I don't think it's possible to overstate the danger and destruction these events can cause, and how hard it is for the people working to salvage whatever they can, be they rescue workers or the broader affected communities.

Nature is unforgiving. It doesn't care about your plans. It doesn't care about your preparedness. Yes, being prepared is important when you have time and warning, but when a wall of water at tall as a house hits against all predictions in the middle of the night, it's going to come through, and it's going to sweep up everything in its path. And then, there's nothing to do but grieve and rebuild and hope it doesn't happen again.

MOO

 

[iamshadow21]

2 Camp La Junta campers share how they survived Kerr County floodwaters

The memories of going away to summer camp typically last a lifetime. For brothers Piers and Ruffin Boyett, their memories at Camp La Junta will carry a new meaning.

www.ksat.com

Live updates: At least 43 people have died in Guadalupe River flooding

The National Weather Service issued a flash flood watch for a large area of the Hill Country and South Central Texas that includes Bandera, Bastrop, Bexar, Blanco, Burnet, Comal, Gillespie, Guadalupe, Hays Kendall, Kerr, Medina, Travis and Williamson counties.

www.tpr.org

 

[Serononin]

As heartless as it feels to mention money at a time like this, as far as I can tell, the demographic for Camp Mystic campers skews to high income, upper crust society. The families of the survivors from there should be able to afford mental health care and support if they need it.

The supports for people doing search and rescue and other first responders are far more tenuous, if they exist at all. They're on a much lower income, if they're not just straight up volunteers. They're going to be seeing a lot of death and devastation over the days and weeks to come, and a lot of the bodies they're going to be finding are going to be very young children. That takes a toll on anyone, regardless of how long they've been doing the job.

I think the spokesperson vowing to find every single missing child shouldn't have said that. I winced when I read it. It's highly unlikely that every person will be found, even if the best efforts are extended weeks into the future. Flood waters take, and they don't always give back what they take. That's the reality of this kind of disaster. By promising not to stop, he's putting unfair pressure on the searchers and giving families and the community unreasonable expectations of what is actually, realistically possible. And that can compound the trauma everyone affected is left with.

MOO

I completely agree. I hope they do manage to find everyone, but considering how difficult it must be to even accurately determine how many people they're looking for, it's hard to believe that it would be possible

 

[Marfe]

You link says the Kerrville PD issued an alert at 5am. They were way behind the NWS.

At 2:03 a.m. the National Weather Service issued its fifth warning of the evening, each of which had been more strident than the last.

This one said "This is a PARTICULARLY DANGEROUS SITUATION. SEEK HIGHER GROUND NOW! Life threatening flash flooding of low water crossings, small creeks and streams, urban areas, highways, streets and underpasses."

source:

At least 52 dead in Texas flooding; search and rescue ongoing

Rescuers search for missing people; victims being identified.

www.usatoday.com

Please don't take my post out of context/misquote me. The rest stated: "If that is correct, the camp managed to evacuate more than 700 people in a very short time. Still, not enough. Not enough."

My post had nothing to do with the bickering here about warnings being too late, I meant it exactly as posted: they got a LOT of kids out safely. Not all, so not enough, but that is a LOT of kids herded out to safety, in rushing water and pitch black darkness. The camp workers are often also just teens/very young adults themselves (HS/college kids) working a summer job, they must have been so frightened as well.

 

[Eli9]

The watch has been extended for this (Sunday) evening.

Flood Watch continues Sunday for Hill Country, San Antonio, and Central Texas

Less coverage, but flash flooding from pockets of 2″-4″, random bullseye of 5+″ possible

www.ksat.com

Pockets of 2″-4″and a random bullseye of 5″-10″ possible

Beloved Humble ISD teacher killed in Kerrville flooding, district says; wife and son missing

The Humble Independent School District is mourning the loss of teacher Jeff Wilson, who died in the Kerrville flooding.

www.ksat.com

His wife, Amber, and son, Shiloh, are still considered missing, the district said in the Saturday night post.

“He was a beloved teacher and co-worker to many and will be deeply missed,” the post read.

“Please continue to keep their entire family, and ours, in your prayers,” it continued.

 

[Dotta]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1941851611195670698

"One relative said
their house was spotted
'floating down the Guadalupe River'."

RIP

 

[iamshadow21]

I completely agree. I hope they do manage to find everyone, but considering how difficult it must be to even accurately determine how many people they're looking for, it's hard to believe that it would be possible

They've frankly admitted that beyond the 'known missing' - the Camp Mystic girls unaccounted for - they have no idea how many people are actually missing. People camping in tents, RVs, cabins, or residents who live on the water - they've got no idea. (Source: Desperate search for Texas flood survivors intensifies: 'We will not stop.' Live updates Scroll down about two thirds till you get to the quotes from Rice.)

MOO

 

[mickey2942]

It is sobering to realize lives can change in an instant. A fun holiday weekend, completely devastated so many families in the area.

 

[iamshadow21]

It is sobering to realize lives can change in an instant. A fun holiday weekend, completely devastated so many families in the area.

My mum's best friend survived Cyclone Tracy, Darwin, Christmas Day, 1974. It's reminding me a lot of that, though I've seen very destructive major flooding events in my lifetime. Tracy hit on a holiday, middle of the night, was meant to pass by/be much less damaging. An estimated sixty six people died, and most of the city was completely destroyed.

On Christmas Day 50 years ago, Cyclone Tracy reduced Darwin to ruins

It's still one of Australia's worst disasters. Now, 50 years on, survivors of Cyclone Tracy share their incredible tales of the night Darwin was blown away.

www.abc.net.au

MOO

 

[iamshadow21]

The death toll is now 59, according to this article.

https://www.news.com.au/breaking-news/desperate-search-for-missing-girls-as-texas-flood-death-toll-rises/news-story/fe79c660cfb27ce740b990dc2c177f29

 

[Eli9]

Press briefing happening now. Trying to find a link but my internet connection is spotty this morning.

 

[wvmoonangel]

My heart is breaking for the families of these babies that were taken way too soon. This was a horrible tragedy that I wouldn't wish on anyone,I've seen this devastation it's heart breaking. My thoughts and prayers are with all that been affected.