Debris and damage is seen at Kerrville River Park near the Guadalupe River in Kerrville, Texas, on Saturday after historic flooding killed dozens of people in the area and left dozens more missing.
Sergio Martínez-Beltrán/NPR
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Sergio Martínez-Beltrán/NPR
At least 43 people are dead following flooding that slammed Texas Hill Country early Friday morning, Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha said Saturday evening. The deceased include 28 adults and 15 children. Of those, the identities of 12 adults and five children are pending.
At a Christian summer camp next to the Guadalupe River, 27 girls were among those missing. Officials said some of those campers may be stranded and unable to call for help.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said during a news conference Friday night that the state is committing all the necessary resources to continue with a search and rescue mission, including members of the Texas National Guard and state troopers.
The governor issued a disaster declaration for several counties in the area of the state known as the Hill Country, about 70 miles north of San Antonio. Abbott expanded the disaster declaration on Saturday to add more counties impacted by flooding and signed a disaster declaration requesting assistance from the federal government.
W. Nim Kidd, chief of the Texas Division of Emergency Management, said Saturday afternoon that officials are still “actively searching” for people alive but that those efforts “will turn into recovery at some point.”
“When you talk to the men and women that are up there in those helicopters and out in those boats and walking the ground, they’re looking for live people right now and doing everything they can to continue to search as fast as possible,” Kidd said during a press conference.
Abbott also said during the press conference he has instructed every state agency involved with search and rescue to “assume everybody missing is alive” and warned “every minute counts.”
.@USCG is punching through storms to evacuate Americans from central Texas.
We will fly throughout the night and as long as possible.
This is what the men and women of the U.S. Coast Guard do. pic.twitter.com/2vOgkS5Hun
— Secretary Kristi Noem (@Sec_Noem) July 4, 2025
Officials say more than 850 people have been rescued so far, and many of them were rescued by helicopters. Texas officials say some of the areas affected remain without power or internet access.
Leitha said in a Saturday morning news conference that rescue efforts were ongoing, but he could not give a timeline of how long it would take to recover everyone affected by the flood.
“This community is strong and will continue to pull together,” Leitha said. “We will not stop until every single person is found … I can’t tell you how long it’s going to take. It’ll take a while.”
Damaged vehicles and debris are seen roped off near the banks of the Guadalupe River after flooding in Ingram, Texas, on Friday.
Michel Fortier/The San Antonio Express-News/AP
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Michel Fortier/The San Antonio Express-News/AP
Leitha said that officials are not asking the community for volunteers, but the Salvation Army in Kerrville is requesting supplies, including: trash bags, bleach, diapers and other nonperishable essentials.
At an earlier briefing, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said more than 500 responders and 14 helicopters were deployed to find anyone who is trapped in the inundated area.
“We have deployed a number of personnel to multiple locations throughout the Texas Hill Country to assist with search and rescue efforts,” Patrick said, noting that the region is popular for summer camps, including one for hundreds of girls. He said the state’s emphasis is to locate unaccounted for teenagers.
“Within 45 minutes, the Guadalupe River rose 26 feet and it was a destructive flood — taking property and sadly lives,” Patrick said. He added that the region got 12 inches or more of rain per hour.
The situation may still get worse. Leitha said authorities believe the number of fatalities could grow.
“This is probably going to be a couple of days’ process,” Leitha said during the earlier press conference.
People are reunited Friday at a reunification center in Ingram, Texas, after flash flooding hit the area.
Eric Gay/AP
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Eric Gay/AP
At an elementary school in Kerrville, which served as a reunification center, hundreds of people waited for news from their relatives. Some parents were able to meet with their children, but some have yet to hear from their kids.
That’s the case of Tanya Powell. Her 21-year-old daughter Ella Rose was still missing. “She was near the camp at a house with three of their friends, they are college seniors in San Antonio. They were here for the weekend and we lost touch with them about 4 a.m. and haven’t gotten any word from them,” Powell said.
One of the summer camps affected, Camp Mystic, is an all-girls Christian summer camp that has been operating in the area for nearly 100 years.
Angela Trafton’s granddaughter was attending camp when rain began pouring during the night. The girl survived, but Trafton was left shaken by the ordeal.
“We’re so grateful,” she said, barely able to speak through her tears. “This is her seventh year [as a camper]. I don’t know that she’ll ever come back now.”
First responders deploy boats along the Guadalupe River after deadly flooding on Friday in Kerrville, Texas.
Christopher Lee/The San Antonio Express-News/AP
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Christopher Lee/The San Antonio Express-News/AP
On Friday, the National Weather Service issued a hazard weather warning. In a statement, the NWS warned, “Flooding caused by excessive rainfall continues to be possible.” The agency said an additional 1 to 3 inches of rain could fall across the region, but that “isolated spots in the Hill Country could see up to 5 inches.”
The NWS explained the extreme rainfall is being caused by a moist tropical air mass combined with a slow moving storm system in counties across south central Texas.
KSAT News meteorologist Sarah Spivey in San Antonio said that the “rain bomb” the area is currently experiencing is typical in the aftermath of years-long droughts like those in the affected counties.
“You know, we’re in a multi-year drought here in this area, and if you’ve been in this area long enough, you know even in 1987 there was a flood very similar to the one that is happening right now,” Spivey told NPR Saturday morning. “Our droughts tend to end with these rain bombs in the summer months, and it’s just something that we have to prepare for over and over again in the future.”
Climate change is driving more extreme rainfall events across most of the U.S., making dangerous flooding more likely. A warmer atmosphere can hold more moisture, or water vapor, leading to heavier downpours. In Texas, the heaviest rainstorms now drop about 20% more rain than they did in the late 1950s, according to the National Climate Assessment.
A member of the public stands next to overturned vehicles and broken trees on Saturday after a flash flood at the Guadalupe River in Kerrville, Texas.
Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP via Getty Images
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Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP via Getty Images
Spivey also pointed to the terrain of the region, which is more susceptible to flood damage.
“It’s called the Hill Country for a reason. Winding hills and a river, Guadalupe River, that runs through these hills onto limestone, so there’s not much area for the water to soak into,” she said.
Kerr County officials said the Guadalupe River, which runs through the region, is currently cresting at 39 feet or more — up from about 3 feet before the rainfall.
Judge Rob Kelly signed a declaration of disaster, following the devastation to property and loss of life left behind by the severe weather storm.
“Suffice it today this has been a very devastating and deadly flood,” Kelly said during a Friday morning press conference.
Kelly’s office said damages will be monumental to both public infrastructure and private properties, with estimates impossible to determine until floodwaters recede.
