Texas, U.S. — The death toll from last week’s catastrophic flash floods in central Texas has surged past 100, with dozens still unaccounted for and hopes of finding more survivors slipping away.
Rescue teams, knee-deep in mud and heartbreak, are battling not only the debris but the threat of more rain as thunderstorms hover over the devastated region.
Among the hardest hit was Camp Mystic, a Christian summer camp for girls, which confirmed that at least 27 campers and staff members perished in the disaster.
Ten girls and a counselor are still missing, adding to the growing list of heartbreaks tied to the July Fourth tragedy.
Kerr County bore the brunt of the destruction. Torrential rain swelled the Guadalupe River before dawn on Friday, submerging entire neighborhoods and sweeping away families.
Officials said at least 84 victims — 56 adults and 28 children — died in the county alone. Many of the dead remain unidentified, with 22 adults and 10 children still awaiting confirmation.
Camp Mystic issued a somber statement Monday, saying, “Our hearts are broken alongside our families that are enduring this unimaginable tragedy.”
The camp’s co-owner and director, 70-year-old Richard Eastland, was among the dead. According to the Austin American-Statesman, Eastland died while trying to save children at the camp — a hero in his final moments. “The whole community will miss him,” local pastor Del Way told the BBC.
With more slow-moving storms forecasted this week, the National Weather Service (NWS) is warning of additional flash floods — a cruel twist for a region still reeling. Yet the political storm brewing in the disaster’s aftermath may be just as fierce.
Critics of the Trump administration have raised concerns that recent job cuts at the NWS’s parent agency, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), may have affected early warnings. But the White House isn’t having it.
“That was an act of God,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said during Monday’s daily briefing.
“It’s not the administration’s fault the flood hit when it did. The National Weather Service did its job.”
According to Leavitt, the Austin-San Antonio NWS office issued a flood watch on Thursday afternoon, conducted local briefings, and followed up with multiple flood warnings throughout the night and early morning of July 4.
Pressed about whether federal budget cuts could have played a role, President Trump appeared to sidestep the issue, instead pointing to “the Biden set-up” — a nod to his Democratic predecessor — before quickly softening his tone. “I wouldn’t blame Biden for it, either,” Trump said. “This is a 100-year catastrophe.”
Texas Senator Ted Cruz took a more bipartisan tone at a Monday news conference, warning against using the tragedy for “partisan finger-pointing.” Still, local campaigners like Nicole Wilson argue there were long-standing gaps in preparedness.
Wilson, who is leading a petition, is demanding flood sirens for Kerr County — a safety measure other counties already have in place.
Despite a decade of debate, funding for sirens was never approved in Kerr County. On Monday, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick acknowledged the delay may have cost lives and pledged to have sirens installed by next summer.
International condolences have poured in. King Charles III sent a message to President Trump, expressing “profound sadness” and offering his “deepest sympathy” to the families affected. The British Embassy in Washington confirmed the message.
Back on the ground in Texas, the grief is raw, the questions are many, and the rain still hasn’t stopped.
As the search continues and the community mourns, one thing is certain — this Independence Day will be remembered not for celebration, but for a tragedy that shattered hearts across the nation.
