A crazy flash flood hit Texas during the July 4th holiday, and it came out of nowhere.
While most of the country was busy watching fireworks, Kerrville and nearby areas were getting hit hard by rising water.
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The Guadalupe River swelled fast, way faster than anyone expected. In just minutes, the flooding turned deadly.
Reports said at least 51 people lost their lives. Fifteen of them were kids. And now, search teams are still trying to find several missing children.
The floodwaters hit with terrifying speed
A lot of people watching from outside probably couldn’t really imagine how fast it all happened.
But there was this timelapse video that got posted on Twitter. It really showed the scary power of the water.
In about seven minutes, a dry road turned into a dangerous, muddy flood. It was wild. One second everything looked normal, then boom. Flood.
You can see people walking into a dip in the road, and suddenly, water just comes rushing in like a wave.
The footage shocked viewers on social media
People who saw the video were stunned. The comments said it all.
One person wrote, “Yeah that’s becoming WAY too familiar of a scene. What’s going on?” Someone else added, “That is scary! No wonder people couldn’t evacuate in time. But, why were they not warned?”
Another user said, “Who could’ve predicted this? NOAA alerts notwithstanding… Horrifying.”
A summer camp was devastated by the flooding
One of the scariest parts is that hundreds of girls were out at Camp Mystic, a summer camp near Kerrville.
When the water came in, more than 20 kids went missing. There were about 750 girls at the camp altogether.
The camp lost all power, water, and internet after the flooding. Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick said the missing kids aren’t necessarily “lost.” He explained, “They could be out of communication.”
Still, parents have been panicking, trying to figure out where their daughters are. Sadly, one mom confirmed to CNN that her 9-year-old daughter, Janie Hunt, didn’t make it.
Rescue efforts continue with urgency
Even now, search teams are working nonstop.
On July 5, Kerrville police gave an update saying they were still looking for everyone. “Hundreds of first responders are here with resources from throughout the state to help us,” they posted on Facebook.
“Our thoughts remain with those who are unaccounted for and their loved ones. They are our focus and will remain so.”
Emergency declarations have been issued
Rain hasn’t let up much since then, and the National Weather Service put out more flood warnings for folks nearby.
Governor Greg Abbott signed an extended emergency declaration and also asked for federal help.
Local officials describe the disaster as unexpected
A lot of people are asking how something like this could hit so fast.
Even Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly said no one really saw it coming. It just wasn’t the kind of thing anyone had expected at that scale.
Officials explain why the flooding was so extreme
Dalton Rice, who’s the city manager in Kerrville, broke it down a bit.
“When you look at the headwaters of the Guadalupe… there’s a north and a south fork,” he said.
“Since 1987, under normal conditions, if you can call it that, you’ll hit water in one of those areas, and those two forks will converge into the Guadalupe, which comes through the city of Kerrville.”
He added that the storm just dumped way more rain than expected.
“This rain event sat on top of that and dumped more rain than what was forecasted on both of those forks.”
Then it got worse. “When we got the report, it was about 7 feet or so on the south fork, and within a matter of minutes it was up to 29 feet, and all of that converged at Guadalupe.”
The death toll and damage continue to grow
So far, the confirmed number of people who died is 51. Fifteen of them were kids.
And with rescue efforts still ongoing, that number could go up.
It’s been a heartbreaking scene for everyone watching, and even more so for the families living through it.