Islamabad (Web-Desk) The desperate search for 27 missing girls stretched into a third day on Sunday, as rescue teams continued to comb the devastated Texas Hill Country after catastrophic flooding swept through a popular summer camp. Authorities urged Texans to pray for those still unaccounted for, hoping for a miracle as conditions remained challenging.
At least 51 people have been confirmed dead across the region, including 15 children. The hardest hit was Kerr County, where 43 lives were lost. Additional fatalities were reported in Travis (4), Burnet (3), and Kendall (1) counties. The disaster unfolded early Friday, when relentless rain caused the Guadalupe River to rise a staggering 26 feet in just 45 minutes, destroying homes, overturning vehicles, and overwhelming campsites.
Among the most tragic sites was Camp Mystic, a Christian summer camp along the river, where many victims were found and dozens of girls remain missing. As official search efforts pressed on, worried family members and volunteers began scouring the riverbanks on their own, despite pleas from authorities to avoid the hazardous area.
Rescue teams faced immense obstacles — maneuvering through piles of debris, broken trees, and mud-filled wreckage in hopes of finding survivors. They employed helicopters, boats, drones, and conducted daring rescues of people stranded in trees or trapped in isolated camps cut off by washed-out roads. Within the first 36 hours, over 850 people were rescued.
Governor Greg Abbott declared Sunday a day of prayer across Texas, calling on citizens to remember those lost and those still missing. “Authorities will keep working around the clock, expanding search areas as waters recede,” he promised.
The disaster drew international sympathy. In Rome, Pope Leo XIV offered condolences in English at the end of his Sunday address, saying, “We pray for all the families who have lost loved ones, especially the daughters who were in summer camp, in the disaster caused by flooding of the Guadalupe River.”
The picturesque hills along the river are dotted with historic youth camps that have hosted families for generations, especially around Independence Day. That popularity made it even harder to determine how many people might still be missing. Kerrville City Manager Dalton Rice said Saturday, “We don’t even want to begin to estimate at this time.”
Survivors recounted harrowing experiences: some were swept away by the raging waters and clung to trees, while others fled to attics hoping the flood wouldn’t reach them. At Camp Mystic, a cabin full of terrified girls gripped a rope strung by rescuers as they carefully crossed a bridge with water whipping around their legs.
Among those confirmed dead was an 8-year-old girl from Mountain Brook, Alabama, who had been attending Camp Mystic, as well as the director of a nearby camp. Although locals know this area as “flash flood alley,” the nighttime deluge still caught many by surprise.
The National Weather Service issued flood watches on Thursday, then a series of flash flood warnings early Friday before declaring rare “flash flood emergencies,” signaling immediate life-threatening danger. Some camps did act early: Mo-Ranch Camp moved hundreds to higher ground, while Camps Rio Vista and Sierra Vista noted online they were monitoring the weather.
Still, officials said no one anticipated such an intense downpour — an entire season’s worth of rain fell within hours. U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, whose district includes the ravaged area, acknowledged, “There’s going to be second-guessing and finger-pointing” as communities seek accountability and answers in the aftermath.
