Tragedy in Texas: the death toll from the floods rises to 120 and the missing to 170

Washington.– Authorities have updated to 120 the number of people dead due to the devastating floods in central Texas during the past Independence Day holiday weekend, while more than 170 remain missing. In Kerr County alone, the deaths of 96 people have been confirmed; the remaining deaths occurred in five other counties near San Antonio (Texas). At least twenty-seven girls and monitors have died at Mystic Camp, on the banks of the Guadalupe River.

“The focus remains rescue and reunification,” assured Jonathan Lamb, the police chief of Kerville, epicenter of the tragedy, this Thursday.

Lamb also confirmed that five girls and a monitor are still missing after the river’s rise went through the Mystic summer camp. Local authorities have been questioned by residents and experts for not having ordered the evacuation of areas near the river, despite the heavy rains, as well as the fact that the camp monitors were not coordinated via walkie-talkies.

You may be interested in: “I saw a giant wall of water”: testimony of a survivor of the floods in Texas

Several Kerrville residents stated in interviews with EFE that they received flood and heavy rain alerts in the early hours of July 4, but were not asked to evacuate or move to another area. From 1:00 a.m. on Saturday, the National Weather Service (NWS) began issuing alerts about the threat of flooding in Bandera and Kerr counties. The Texas Department of Emergency Management stated today in a statement that a decade ago the state rejected funds twice for Kerr County to have an early flood warning system.