Severe flooding across central Texas has caused the death toll to exceed 100 by Monday afternoon.
Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha confirmed that authorities had recovered 75 bodies, including 48 adults and 27 children. Among the victims are 10 campers and one counselor from Camp Mystic who remain unaccounted for. Search efforts continue as rescue crews seek to locate 41 individuals still missing.
The White House Faith Office issued a statement on Sunday, calling on Americans to unite in prayer amid the tragedy. “To join us in prayer for the precious lives lost,” the statement emphasized, quoting Psalm 34:18: “The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.”
The office urged the nation “to come together to pray for the victims, their families, and the first responders conducting rescue missions to find those still missing. May God wrap his loving arms around all those in Texas.”
Camp Mystic, a historic all-girls summer camp founded in 1926 and located along the Guadalupe River in Hunt , Kerr County, was heavily impacted by the floods.
The camp, which was hosting around 750 children at the time, experienced a rapid rise in floodwaters—nearly 25 feet in just 45 minutes last Friday. On Saturday, 27 girls were reported missing, but by Sunday, the number had decreased to 12 and then 11, including 10 girls and a camp counselor.
Tragically, Camp Mystic Director Dick Eastland is among those who lost their lives. He is believed to have died while trying to save some of the girls attending the camp during the flood.
Since heavy rains started on Friday, at least 82 deaths have been officially confirmed across Central Texas, and statewide, 41 individuals are still reported missing, including 10 girls and one counselor from Camp Mystic, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety and The Associated Press.
Governor Greg Abbott noted that the rescue operations involve 230 members of the Texas Department of Public Safety, the Texas National Guard, and victim support teams.
He warned residents about continued dangers, emphasizing that while future flooding might not reach the same magnitude seen in Kerrville, flash floods can occur even with lower water levels in saturated areas. The governor urged everyone to stay alert and heed emergency alerts in the coming days.
During the briefing, Colonel Freeman Martin of the Texas Department of Public Safety stated that recovery efforts have shifted focus to identifying the victims and helping their families find closure. The Texas Rangers are collecting DNA samples from both families and the victims to identify remains through rapid DNA testing at the University of North Texas in Denton.
