The rains fell with a devastating force. The dawn of Friday the sky discharged in just a few hours a water thrombus equivalent to almost half of the annual precipitation of Kerr County, in the center-south of Texas. Among them 14 children, and dozens of missing, according to the provisional balance of local authorities. It is an unprecedented event in the last century in the area, an eminently rural region about 100 kilometers from San Antonio, where a summer camp was installed that hosted 750 girls. One of them died and about twenty have not yet been located.
The minors were surprised by the rains while a few days passed in Camp Mystic, on the shores of the Guadalupe River. The river overflowed after a vertiginous flood of eight meters in less than an hour. The mother of Janie Hunt, nine, confirmed to CNN on the morning of this Saturday that her daughter had been found lifeless. Hours before, the woman had stated that she was praying to find her alive. The parents of the rest of the girls in an unknown whereabouts began publishing photographs on social networks in the hope of getting information.
The authorities assured from the first moment that they had launched a long -scale search operation. “We will do everything possible [para encontrarlas]reviewing each tree, removing each stone, whatever necessary, ”said Texas Vice Governor, Dan Patrick, to the families of the minors.
The Mystic camp welcomed a total of 750 girls. Its website describes it as a “Christian”, “healthy” place, where small “develop qualities” and become “best people.” The place was devastated after floods. More than a hundred rangers managed to enter to provide help to the people affected since Friday early, and managed to start the bailouts after noon.
The storms, which have been described as “catastrophic”, have left a partial balance of more than 30 deaths. The local sheriff, Larry Leitha, reported that at least 24 of these people lost their lives in Kerr County, and another in Kendall’s nearby county. General Major Thomas Sozer, at the head of the Texas National Guard, said the rescue teams worked throughout Saturday night, and that so far more than 850 people from the flooded areas have been rescued and evacuated. The majority were treated and translated by helicopter, although there are also teams of specialized swimmers deployed in the area. The legislator Chip Roy, representative of the district, said that some 1,000 local, state and federal troops are collaborating in the search tasks.
The storms in Kerr began around four in the morning of July 4. The reports show that the rains reached heights between 10 and 20 centimeters. In addition, heights of up to 38 centimeters were reported in some areas.
On Friday night, the state governor, the Republican signed a disaster statement to ensure that “local officials have the resources to continue responding to floods,” he said in his X account. “Texas will not stop at anything to ensure that they realize each disappeared person,” he wrote.
The President promised the sending of federal aid and described the facts as “a terrible situation.” He also wrote on his social networks that he accompanies with his prayers “all families affected by this terrible tragedy.” “Our brave lifeguards are in the place doing what they know best. God bless families already Texas!”
Meanwhile, the Secretary of National Security, said that she has been working to “provide all possible resources” to the victims and to “safeguard Americans in crisis.” With this objective, as explained, the resources of the Federal Agency for Emergency Management (FEMA) were activated, whose mission is to help the victims of any disaster situation. FEMA is currently decimated and runs the risk of being dismantled by the Trump administration. Noem herself recently said that the agency should change their name and that the states themselves should take care of managing their emergencies.
The National Security Manager also confirmed that the United States Coast Guard is working in the affected area, in order to evacuate neighbors who are risks. “We will fly throughout the night and as long as possible. This is what the men and women of the Coast Guard do,” he said.
