HUNT: Rescuers searched on Saturday for 27 girls missing from a riverside summer camp in the US state of Texas, after torrential rains caused devastating flooding that killed at least 27 people — with more rain on the way.
“So far, we’ve evacuated over 850 uninjured people, eight injured people and have recovered 27 deceased fatalities at this time,” said Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha, adding that nine children were among the dead.
Addressing a press conference, Kerrville city official Dalton Rice said hundreds of people were taking part in rescue operations, many of these via helicopter. “One thing I want to tell you and assure y’all is that we will not stop till every single person is found,” said Leitha.
The flooding began Friday as months’ worth of rain fell in a matter of hours, causing the Guadalupe River to rise by 26 feet (eight meters) in 45 minutes.
7 girls missing from riverside summer camp
The National Weather Service warned of more extremely heavy rain and “locally catastrophic” flash flooding to come in the region, located northwest of San Antonio.
In Kerrville on Saturday, the usually calm Guadalupe River was flowing fast, its murky waters filled with debris. “It rained in a day what it usually rains in a year,” said local resident Gerardo Martinez, 61. “The water reached the top of the trees. About ten meters or so,” he added.
“Cars, whole houses were going down the river. That was pretty bad.” Flash floods, which occur when the ground is unable to absorb torrential rainfall, are not unusual.
But scientists say that in recent years human-driven climate change has made extreme weather events like floods, droughts and heat waves more frequent and more intense.
‘Still missing’
A massive rescue operation began on Friday, with around 500 personnel and 14 helicopters helping in the search for survivors. On Saturday, city official Rice said 27 children from the Camp Mystic Christian summer camp in the flooded Kerr County were still missing.
US media reported that two of the missing girls were dead, citing their families. The missing were among the roughly 750 children at Camp Mystic, a girls summer camp along the banks of the Guadalupe River.
The Heart O’ The Hills summer camp, located about a mile away from Camp Mystic, confirmed on Saturday that its director Jane Ragsdale was among the dead.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott has signed a disaster declaration to boost resources for counties in the region, and President Donald Trump has promised federal support.
Trump said his Homeland Security secretary, Kristi Noem, would visit the affected area on Saturday.
‘Boots on the ground’
Rice said that rescuers were facing “very difficult” conditions. “We did start boots on the ground operations about 8am this morning,” he said, warning residents not to launch their own searches. “They are going to be in very debris-ed terrain, very difficult, challenging contours along the river banks.” Rice added that it was not known how many people may have been visiting the popular camping area, and declined to give an overall figure for how many people were missing.
State and local officials warned against residents traveling to the area, which includes campgrounds dotted along the river, with dozens of roads impassable. Videos on social media showed houses and trees swept away by the flash flood caused by heavy overnight rain of up to 12 inches — one-third of Kerr County’s average annual rainfall.
Governor Abbott shared a video on X of a victim being plucked from the top of a tree by a rescuer dangling from a helicopter, as floodwaters raged below.
Soila Reyna, 55, a Kerrville resident who works at a local church helping people who lost their belongings, witnessed the devastation unfold. “It has been years since we had a flood, but nothing like this,” Reyna said.
“Nothing like as catastrophic as this, where it involved children, people and just the loss of people’s houses and you know, it’s just crazy,” she added. Martinez said Friday’s flooding was some of the worst he had ever seen.
Published in Dawn, July 6th, 2025
