KERRVILLE — The number of people killed in devastating Central Texas floods increased to 90 on Monday as emergency officials continued searching through snapped trees and wrecked homes for missing people, and clouds threatened to dump more rain across the region.
Camp Mystic, a summertime Christian retreat for generations of Texas girls, confirmed Monday that 27 of its campers and counselors had died in the flash floods that inundated the Guadalupe River in Kerr County on Friday during a deluge of rainfall. Among the dead was the camp’s director, Richard “Dick” Eastland. Local officials said at a news conference that 10 campers and one counselor were among those still unaccounted for.
“Our hearts are broken alongside our families that are enduring this unimaginable tragedy,” camp officials posted on their website. “We ask for your continued prayers, respect and privacy for each of our families affected.”
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It’s unclear whether all 27 victims confirmed by Camp Mystic are included in the official death toll.
As the recovery efforts entered a third day, 25 people across the Central Texas region were still reported missing. Local government officials said the scope of the devastation was still unclear as they dealt with prank calls, false tips and rugged terrain across the roughly 60-mile area they were searching.
President Donald Trump is expected to visit later this week, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Monday.
Meanwhile, questions about a lack of sufficient warnings have continued to grow since the flash floods.
The National Weather Service issued a flood watch Thursday afternoon, predicting up to seven inches of isolated rainfall early Friday morning. At 1:14 a.m. Friday, the NWS issued the first flash flood warning. At 4:03 a.m., the NWS issued a flash flood emergency, warning of an “extremely dangerous and life-threatening situation.”
Local and state officials have since said the NWS forecasts did not accurately predict the intensity of the rainfall. Leavitt defended the agency, telling reporters that “the National Weather Service executed timely and precise forecasts and warnings.”
This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune at https://www.texastribune.org/2025/07/07/texas-hill-country-flooding-camp-mystic/.
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