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Texas flooding deaths rise; Saturday flood watch: Updates

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Texas flooding deaths rise; Saturday flood watch: Updates

Texas flooding deaths rise; Saturday flood watch: Updates

Featured, USA14 hours ago3 Views

Search crews continued the grueling task of recovering the missing as more potential flash flooding threatened Texas Hill Country.

Over a week since an inundated Guadalupe River sent floodwaters tearing through homes and youth camps in Texas, optimism for rescuing any of the dozens of people still missing from Hill Country on Saturday has steadily faded as the death toll continued to rise.

Hundreds of rescuers, many of them volunteers, have scoured miles of destruction for any sign of the missing. But they haven’t rescued anyone alive since July 4, the day of the flood, officials in the hardest-hit Kerr County said. Some 160 people are missing from the county alone.

As of the morning of July 12, the death toll had risen to at least 129, with authorities in Kerr and Travis counties reporting more bodies recovered. The toll in Kerr County rose to at least 103, including 67 adults and 36 children, according to the county’s Joint Information Center. In Travis County, the toll rose to nine from eight, spokesperson Hector Nieto confirmed to USA TODAY. Officials previously said at least 27 campers and counselors from Camp Mystic, the beloved all-girls Christian camp, were among the dead.

“I’ve never seen anything like this, and I’ve seen a lot of bad ones,” President Donald Trump said as he and first lady Melania Trump surveyed the damage on Friday. “It’s hard to believe the devastation.”

Authorities in Texas, including the governor, have pledged that crews will not stop their search until every missing person is accounted for. Dozens remain missing in Hill Country, with the majority lost from Kerr County. Experts say that the number of people reported missing in the wake of disasters is often inflated, however.

About 170 people are believed to be missing, including 161 missing in Kerr County. Other counties have reported on a few missing, including one in Burnet County: Volunteer Fire Chief Michael Phillips.

Phillips was last seen one week ago as he was responding to a rescue call before he and his vehicle were swept into the raging waters. The vehicle has been located but Phillips was not inside.

“Specialist teams and equipment continue to deploy into the search area and work themselves to exhaustion or until nightfall in the effort to find him,” the Burnet County Sheriff’s Office said Saturday.

The hard-hit Texas Hill Country has a flood watch in effect through the evening of July 13, according to the National Weather Service office serving Austin and San Antonio.

Between 1 and 3 inches of rain could fall, with isolated amounts of nearly 6 inches possible in areas, the weather service said in an X post the morning of July 12. Runoff may result in dangerous flash floods of low-lying areas, which can include rivers, creeks and other low-water crossings.

Officials said the watch includes the southern Edwards Plateau, which includes Kerr County, and along the Interstate 35 corridor between Austin and San Antonio. The watch is in effect until 7 p.m. July 13.

More than 19 million people are under flood watches in Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico on July 12, according to the National Weather Service.

The weather service office serving Austin and San Antonio warned of the potential for locally heavy rainfall and flash flooding in hard-hit areas of Texas Hill Country through July 13.

“Locally heavy rain on already saturated ground is capable of causing flash flooding this weekend,” the Kerr County Sheriff’s Office said in a Facebook post.

– Dinah Voyles Pulver

From Arkansan Black Hawk helicopters to Wisconsin K-9 teams, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott gave thanks to states aiding in response to the Hill Country floods.

The efforts following the deadly floods have required scores of resources to assist in searching for missing people.

“Our ongoing recovery operations are boosted by the support of other states,” Abbott posted to X on July 12.

Abbott also thanked California, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Virginia for providing their resources. The support also included swift water boats and drones to aid Texas officials.

The family of Katherine Ferruzzo, a counselor at Camp Mystic who remained among the missing for the last week, said her remains were found Friday.

Ferruzzo was a recent graduate of Memorial High School in Houston and was headed to the University of Texas at Austin in the fall. She planned to become a special education teacher, the family said in a statement on Saturday.

“We are incredibly grateful to all the search and rescue professionals and volunteers who have remained steadfast in their efforts to locate the victims of this tragedy. We would especially like to thank the Texas Rangers,” the family said in the statement provided by a spokesperson, Paige Donnell.

Dozens of children and staff members from Camp Mystic were among the dead, authorities have said. The nearly century-old camp in Hunt, Texas, is one of several along the Guadalupe River and saw some of the worst flooding on July 4. Also among those reported dead were the camp’s owner, Dick Eastland, campers Sarah Marsh, 8; Hanna and Rebecca Lawrence, 14; and counselor Chloe Childress, 19.

“Katherine has a fierce and loving spirit, and we have no doubt she did all she could to save the lives of the girls in her cabin,” her family said in a previous statement.

The overwhelming response from community members near and far has become perhaps too generous, officials in Kerrville said on Saturday. The Kerrville Police Department said so many people have brought food for its staff, some has gone to waste. All its needs, including meals, are taken care of, the police department said.

The police department also asked law enforcement officers in the region to stop showing up unannounced to help, as it is coordinating with agencies to assign officers to certain tasks.

On Friday, the city of Kerrville asked volunteers to stop coming to help, as the most urgent needs are being handled by first responders and families within the community who were affected by the flooding.

“Your generosity and support mean more than words can express,” the city said. “Please don’t lose heart – your help WILL be needed. As the days and weeks unfold, there will be many opportunities to step in and support our neighbors. We promise to share updates as specific volunteer needs arise.”

More than 10 months after Hurricane Helene spawned floods that ripped through western North Carolina last year, the bodies of Lysa Gindinova’s 3-year-old cousin, Yevhenii Segen, and their grandmother, Tatiana Novitnia, have still not been found. The two were swept away by floodwaters, and the family wrestles with the fact they may never see them again.

“It doesn’t feel real,” Gindinova told USA TODAY.

Families in Texas are starting to face that same haunting realization after the deadly Hill Country flash floods as volunteers continue to scour the region for the missing.

Much like last year’s North Carolina floods, the Texas floods left behind mountains of debris: piles of crushed trailers and cars, stacks of downed cypress trees and walls of hardened mud that make recovery challenging. The amount of debris and destruction have made the grim task slow and taxing.

Troy Tillman, 34, a sheriff’s detective from just outside Lubbock, Texas, described uncovering a Ford F-250 pickup – completely submerged in mud and rock along the Guadalupe in Center Point, about 10 miles downriver from Kerrville. If a 3-ton truck like that is buried, Tillman thought, what else could be entombed at their feet?

Read more.

‒ Rick Jervis and Christopher Cann

Volunteers expected to help with recovery Saturday

Kerr County said it is expecting a large number of “spontaneous volunteers” to help with recovery efforts on Saturday. Volunteers have been a key part of search and rescue in the days since the flood, with officials sometimes asking volunteers to stay away so qualified personnel can conduct some of the grueling work.

Volunteers are asked to register with Texas Community Recovery and check in at Tivy Antler Stadium in Kerrville before attending a safety briefing.

Officials continue to grapple with question of blame

Officials in Texas have faced relentless questions about what could have been done to prevent the high death toll and short amount of warning time in the Hill Country flooding. In Kerr County, Sheriff Larry Leitha has said he’s not dodging the questions, but is focusing on the top priority of locating each missing person and identifying each victim found.

Trump on Friday rejected concerns about whether communities along the Guadalupe River were adequately prepared for the disaster.

“I think everybody did an incredible job under the circumstances,” Trump said. “Only a very evil person would ask a question like that.”

Gov. Greg Abbott earlier in the week said “blame” was the “word choice of losers.”

Is more flooding on the way?

As cleanup and recovery continues in Texas Hill Country, a renewed threat of flash flooding is in store over the weekend, forecasters said. Scattered showers are expected to develop Saturday afternoon and evening in south-central Texas, including parts of areas that already flooded. Heavy rain can quickly run off already wet ground, forecasters said.

In Kerrville, there is about a 35% chance of an inch of rain falling through Sunday morning, the weather service office serving Austin and San Antonio said.

“The expected heavy rainfall totals along with already sensitive, wet antecedent conditions may lead to scattered to potentially numerous instances of flash flooding,” the National Weather Service said.

Abbott activated emergency response resources on Friday at the Texas Division of Emergency Management in response to the forecast: “Texas continues to stand ready to deploy all necessary resources to support Texans as severe storms move across our state,” he said.

Over 13.5 million people were under flood watches from the National Weather Service across parts of Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico on Saturday morning.