KERRVILLE, Texas (TNND) — At least 82 people are dead and 10 children are still missing after heavy rains caused flash floods to rip through central Texas along the Guadalupe River on the Fourth of July.
Rescuers have continued their search for the missing, including a camp counselor and the children from Camp Mystic, an all-girls summer camp. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott confirmed there were 41 people confirmed to be unaccounted for across the state and more could be missing.
Sheriff Larry Leitha said searchers have found the bodies of 68 people, including 28 children in Kerr County.
He pledged to keep searching until “everybody is found” from Friday’s flash floods. Ten other deaths were reported in Travis, Burnet, Kendall, Tom Green and Williamson counties, according to local officials.
Abott warned on Sunday that additional rounds of heavy rains lasting into Tuesday could produce more life-threatening floods.
President Donald Trump signed a major disaster declaration for Kerr County, activating the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to Texas.
“These families are enduring an unimaginable tragedy, with many lives lost, and many still missing,” Trump said in a Truth Social post. “The Trump Administration continues to work closely with State and Local Leaders.”
He added that the Coast Guard and state first responders have saved more than 850 lives during the floods in Texas.
Trump said he would likely visit the area on Friday.
At Camp Mystic, an 8-year-old girl from Mountain Brook, Alabama, was confirmed dead and two sisters from Dallas were missing after their cabin was swept away.
On Friday, a woman swept some 20 miles down the Guadalupe River was rescued after clinging to a tree and waiting for rescuers for hours.
The destructive, fast-moving waters rose 26 feet (8 meters) on the river in only 45 minutes before daybreak Friday, washing away homes and vehicles.
The National Weather Service on Thursday advised of potential flooding and then sent out a series of flash flood warnings in the early hours of Friday before issuing flash flood emergencies — a rare alert notifying of imminent danger.
Authorities and elected officials have said they did not expect such an intense downpour, the equivalent of months’ worth of rain for the area.
Kerrville City Manager Dalton Rice said authorities are committed to a full review of the emergency response, including how the public was alerted to the storm threat.
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Editor’s note: The Associated Press contributed to this article.
