AT least 28 children are tragically among the 82 confirmed dead as rescuers continue their grim search through flood-ravaged Texas.
A desperate rescue operation is underway as dozens of people remain missing, including ten girls and a camp counsellor from Camp Mystic, following the disaster.
A drone view shows the Guadalupe River and damage from flooding near Camp Mystic in HuntReuters
A destroyed motor home sits on the riverbank in Louise Hays Park next to the Guadalupe River
FacebookSarah Marsh was confirmed dead by the mayor of Mountain Brook[/caption]
Flash flooding on Friday morning took vacationers along the Guadalupe River by surprise with rising water sweeping away cabins.
The worst of the disaster happened at Camp Mystic which is perched on one bank in a bend of the water where 27 campers and counsellors died.
Harrowing tales of victims in the flooding are now emerging including two sisters found dead 15 miles from their cabin still holding hands.
Flash flooding swept through central Texas at around 4am Friday, as water quickly swelled the Guadalupe River.
As water rose 26ft in just 45 minutes, adults desperately tried to save children in nearby cabins.
What we know so far…
Torrential rain sparked deadly flash flooding around the Guadeloupe River
At least 82 people lost their lives – mostly in Kerr County
Families of some Camp Mystic girls have confirmed their deaths
A woman was rescued after being washed 20 miles downstream
Rescue teams continue to search for survivors
Two brothers told of their brave escape from a flooded cabin
But the flooding was too strong and even some adults who desperately tried to save children, like the camp’s beloved director Dick Eastland, were killed.
Camp Mystic said in a statement: “This tragedy has devastated us and our entire community.
“Our hearts are broken alongside the families that are enduring this tragedy, and we share their hope and prayers.”
Ten other deaths have been reported in nearby Travis, Burnet, Kendall, Tom Green and Williamson counties, officials said.
Rescuers are now scouring the devastated landscape as they search for survivors.
A total of 41 people remain missing, according to Governor Greg Abbott.
It comes as Donald Trump announced he signed a Major Disaster Declaration for Kerr County to help search efforts in response to the “unimaginable tragedy” in Texas.
He pledged to keep searching until everybody is found from Friday’s flash floods.
Taking to Truth Social, the US president said the declaration will “ensure that our Brave First Responders immediately have the resources they need”.
GettyConstruction equipment is seen caught in the Guadalupe River[/caption]
A Texas Department of Public Safety official combs through the banks of the Guadalupe River near Camp MysticAP
“These families are enduring an unimaginable tragedy, with many lives lost, and many still missing,” he added.
Debris has now been left where the waters rose to, with trees, sodden mattresses, and even teddies strewn across the landscape.
Flooding was so strong that trucks and heavy machinery were swept away.
Teams working tirelessly in harsh conditions to find victims have witnessed the disaster first-hand, with dozens of bodies discovered.
Nearly 1,000 people were saved as people took to kayaks to desperately save themselves and search and rescue teams pulled more from the water.
Bobby Templeton, superintendent of Ingram Independent School District, said: “We still have people coming here looking for their loved ones. We’ve had a little success, but not much.”
The family of Virginia Hollis has confirmed she is missing
Kellyanne Lytal is listed as missing in the floods
Eight-year-old Hadley Hanna remains missing, her parents say
Worst-hit was Kerr County, particularly areas around the Guadeloupe River where waters rose by 26ft in 45 minutes following the rainfall.
About a third of a year’s worth of rain fell in a few short hours, completely overwhelming the waterways and creating an “extraordinary catastrophe”.
Dalton Rice, Kerville city manager, said on Saturday: “We’ve been rescuing people out of these camps by the hundreds. There’s a lot of folks that are shelter in place, so we leave them in place to make sure that we get them food, water.”
The parents of all the missing children have been notified – with details about those who tragically died in the flooding now emerging.
Greta Toranzo, 10, is confirmed missing in the harrowing floods
suppliedJanie Hunt, 9, has been confirmed dead[/caption]
A relative of the billionaire family who own the Kansas City Chiefs, nine-year-old Janie Hunt, was tragically among the dead, her distraught mother told CNN.
A relative of nine-year-old Renee Smajstrla revealed on Facebook that the girl’s body had been found.
Shawna Salta wrote: “We are thankful she was with her friends and having the time of her life, as evidenced by this picture from yesterday.”
Lila Bonner’s family also released a statement confirming her death.
They wrote: “In the midst of our unimaginable grief, we ask for privacy and are unable to confirm any details at this time.
Floodwater quickly rose and submerged the valley
ReutersSodden beds inside Camp Mystic after the water receded[/caption]
Vehicles and heavy machinery are littered across the landscape after being picked up by the watergetty
“We ache with all who loved her and are praying endlessly.”
Lila shared a cabin with her best friend Eloise Peck, 8, who also lost her life.
Her mom, Missy Peck, told Fox4: “Eloise was literally friends with everyone. She loved spaghetti but not more than she loved dogs and animals.
“She passed away with her cabinmate and best friend Lila Bonner who also died.
“Eloise had a family who loved her fiercely for the 8 years she was with us. Especially her Mommy.”
Sarah Marsh, from Mountain Brook, Alabama, has also been confirmed dead.
Stewart Welch, the Mayor of Mountain Brook, wrote on social media: “This is an unimaginable loss for her family, her school and our entire community.”
FacebookEight-year-old Renee Smajstrla died in the floods, her family confirmed on Saturday[/caption]
Best friends Eloise Peck and Lila Bonner were sharing a cabin and both lost their livesX/Keenan Willard
He added: “Sarah’s passing is a sorrow shared by all of us, and our hearts are with those who knew her and loved her.”
Elsewhere in Texas, four people were confirmed dead in Travis County, northeast of Kerr, and 13 people were missing, according to public information office director Hector Nieto.
Two sisters on a family holiday to the nearby gated community of Casa Bonita were tragically found 15 miles away.
Blair and Brooke Harber, aged 13 and 11, were found dead by searchers 15 miles away and 12 hours later from the cabin they had been sleeping in.
Tragically, they were still holding hands when they were found, their mother told KLOU.
Their parents – staying in a different cabin – had smashed a window and jumped in a kayak after they woke to find the floodwater.
RJ HarberSisters Blair and Brooke Harber tragically died in the floods[/caption]
FOX4Joyce Badon is still missing[/caption]
But the current was too strong and they needed to be rescued themselves after desperately trying to paddle.
Blair and Brooke’s grandparents are still missing.
The total number of people missing is still unknown.
Texas Department of Emergency Management chief Nim Kidd said air, ground and water-based crews were scouring the length of the Guadalupe River for survivors and the bodies of the dead.
“We will continue the search until all those who are missing are found,” he said.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott said he was expanding a state disaster declaration and was requesting additional federal resources from President Trump.
FOX4Ella Cahill is still missing[/caption]
FOX4Rescue services are also trying to locate Reese Manchaca[/caption]
Amid the sadness, extraordinary stories of survival have also emerged.
A 22-year-old woman was miraculously rescued from a tree after being swept 20 miles downstream by ferocious floodwaters.
And two brothers recounted how they swam for their lives after being woken up by water surging through their cabin.
Piers and Ruffin Boyett were sleeping at Camp La Junta in Hunt.
“The flood started getting bigger,” younger brother Piers told local news site KSAT on Saturday.
“We had bunk beds in our cabins and [the water] was going up to the top bunk and we had one choice – and we had to swim out of our cabin.”
‘Miracle’ survival: Rescued 20 miles downstream
By Patrick Harrington, foreign news reporter
A YOUNG woman was miraculously rescued after being swept 20 miles downriver in the Texas floods.
The 22-year-old was scooped up by fast-moving water from her campsite in Kerr County, Texas by deadly flash floods at 4am, and found clinging to a tree four hours later.
A third of a year’s worth of rain fell in a few hours in the area, creating an “extraordinary disaster”, with an enormous search-and-rescue mission still underway.
A Center Point resident, Carl, heard screaming when he stepped into his yard at around 8am on Friday morning.
He spotted the woman clinging to a huge Cyprus tree near Lion’s Park Dam as the river thundered beneath her.
She had for been holding on for several hours after a terrifying 20-mile journey down dams and dodging debris.
Emergency calls weren’t connecting, so the local resident desperately flagged down a police car for help.
Two rescue boats were scrambled and battled perilous currents to rescue the stranded camper.
By this time, the water level had receded considerably, so the woman was stranded 12ft above the water’s surface.
She was forced to drop into the rescue boat, and was finally brought to safety.
GettyTeams scour devastated landscape after water recedes[/caption]
ReutersFlood waters rose meters up the trunk of the trees[/caption]
GettyA helicopter searches the landscape on Saturday[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
