Wednesday , July 9 2025

Texas floods death toll rises to 24

06-07-2025

HOUSTON: Frantic searches are under way in the US state of Texas after flash floods kill at least 23 people.

More than 20 girls at a summer camp are still missing, according to Texas’ Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick.

“Within 45 minutes, the Guadalupe River rose 26 feet and it was a destructive flood,” Patrick says.

Locals have been turning to social media to look for their missing loved ones, a journalist reports from Texas.

Kerr County’s top official reveals there is no flood warning system in the area.

Independence Day celebrations are being cancelled across Texas tonight

Searches will continue around the clock.

The governor said rescuers will continue tirelessly searching for those who are missing, around the clock.

“(Searches) will continue in the darkness of night. They will take place when the sun is rising in the morning. They will be nonstop.”

‘Extraordinary catastrophe’, says governor.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has just started his press conference about the severe flooding in Texas.

“So many people have been swept up into an extraordinary catastrophe,” he says.

We need a “robust response”, he continues.

We’ve met with officials and we’re collaborating to make sure we address everyone’s concerns, Abbott says.

Four young adults confirmed among missing

Ella Cahill, Aidan Heartfield and Joyce Badon are graduates of Monsignor Kelly High School in Beaumont, a city about a 5-hour drive from Kerr County. They are missing alongside friend Reese Manchaca.

According to a Facebook post by Mackenzie Hodulik, Cahill’s older sister, the group was last heard from at 04:00 local time (10:00 BST), as they were trying to escape a home to “get to higher ground”.

Park rangers reach Camp Mystic

Wardens from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department have reached Camp Mystic, where authorities say more than 20 girls have been unaccounted for since floodwaters swept through the area.

Telecommunication outages in the area have made it hard to contact many people in the region including those at the summer camp.

In a post on X, external, said the department said they are “beginning to bring campers out” though it unclear if these include the group authorities held grave fears for.

The National Weather Service says more flooding remains possible over parts of west-central Texas.

It said several inches of rain fell across the region from Thursday night to this afternoon. The now saturated soil and river flooding make the region “sensitive” to more rainfall.

Light to moderate rain could continue in the San Antonio region through the night, with the possibility of some heavy downpours.

A flash flood warning is in place for Western Llano County in south central Texas this evening.

The weather service advises that people turn around when encountering flooded roads. River banks and culverts can become unstable and unsafe. (Int’l Monitoring Desk)

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