Texas floods raise death toll to 24

Deadly flash flooding in the southern US state of Texas has claimed the lives of 24 people and left nearly as many missing, after torrential rains caused the Guadalupe River to overflow its banks, local officials have confirmed.

At least 25 centimeters of rain fell in central Kerr County early Friday, triggering rapid flash floods along the Guadalupe River. Search and rescue teams have been working through the night, racing to locate those stranded or swept away by the rising waters.

Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha announced during an evening press conference that 24 people had been confirmed dead. He also reported that 23 to 25 individuals – most of them children – were still unaccounted for. “There are kids that are still missing,” Leitha said.

The missing are believed to be part of an all-girls Christian summer camp located on the riverbank in the small town of Hunt. The camp was struck by the floodwaters during the early morning hours.

Dalton Rice, the city manager for nearby Kerrville, said the floods struck with little warning. “This happened very quickly, over a very short period of time that could not be predicted, even with radar,” he said. “It occurred in less than a two-hour span, leaving no time to issue evacuation orders.”

Intense rainstorms frequently lead to dangerous flash floods in Texas. In August 2022, heavy rainfall in the Dallas-Fort Worth area flooded streets, homes, and vehicles, resulting in the death of a 60-year-old woman.

”We have floods all the time. This is the most dangerous river valley in the US,” Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly, the region’s top elected official, said. “But we had no reason to believe this was going to be anything like what’s happened here. None whatsoever.”

As of Friday night, emergency personnel had rescued or evacuated 237 people, including 167 by helicopter.

With additional rain forecast in the region, Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick warned that the threat of flash floods extends from San Antonio to Waco for the next 24 to 48 hours.