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“This remarkable progress reflects countless hours of
coordinated search and rescue operations, careful investigative
work, and an unwavering commitment to bringing clarity and hope
to families during an unimaginably difficult time,” Kerrville
City Manager Dalton Rice said in a statement.
The death toll in Kerr County, 107, held steady for much of this
week even as the intensive search continued.
The flash floods killed at least 135 people in Texas over the
holiday weekend, with most deaths along the Guadalupe River in
Kerr County, about 60 miles (100 kilometers) northwest of San
Antonio.
Just before daybreak on July 4, the destructive, fast-moving
waters rose 26 feet (8 meters) on the Guadalupe, washing away
homes and vehicles.
The floods laid waste to the Hill Country, a popular tourist
destination where campers seek out spots along the river amid
the rolling landscape. It is naturally prone to flash flooding
because its dry, dirt-packed soil cannot soak up heavy rain.
Vacation cabins, youth camps campgrounds fill the riverbanks and
hills of Kerr County, including Camp Mystic, a century-old
Christian summer camp for girls. Located in a low-lying area of
a region known as “flash flood alley,” Camp Mystic lost at least
27 campers and counselors.
The flooding was far more severe than the 100-year event
envisioned by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, experts
said, and it moved so quickly in the middle of the night that it
caught many off guard in a county that lacked a warning system.
In Kerrville, about 100 miles (160 kilometers) west of Austin,
local officials have come under scrutiny over whether residents
were adequately warned about the rising waters.
President Donald Trump and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott have pushed
back aggressively against questions about how well local
authorities responded to forecasts of heavy rain and the first
reports of flash flooding.
Crews have been searching for victims using helicopters, boats
and drones. Earlier efforts were hampered by rain forecasts,
leading some crews to hold off or stop because of worries about
more flooding.
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