The US National Guard has been deployed in Texas after a horrific flash flood killed at least 25 people and swept away dozens of children at Camp Mystic summer camp.
State officials confirmed on the evening of July 4, local time, that at least 25 people had died, including adults and children. Among the dead were 24 in Kerr County and 1 in Kendall County.
According to officials, between 23 and 25 people are still missing at Camp Mystic, a summer camp for female Kristal students along the Guadalupe River. Camp Mystic summer camp has more than 750 attendees.
Helicopters and military vehicles were used to evacuate people. So far, 237 people have been evacuated, including 167 people in helicopters, Major General Thomas Suelzer informed about the efforts of the Texas National Guard.
"During the day or night, at any time of the day, local and state officials will work together," Texas Governor Greg Abbott said.
The governor said that US Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem and Secretary of the Department of Home Affairs Doug Burgum had contacted him to propose support and provide federal resources.
Heavy rain fell in Central Texas in the early morning of July 4, with rainfall equivalent to many months falling in just a few hours, causing serious flooding.
In Kerr County and surrounding areas, rainfall measured as of the morning of July 4 was up to 250-380 mm. This is an area that typically has only about 710-810 mm of rain per year. However, this time, the rainfall equivalent to 4 months has fallen in just 4 hours.
Unlike the usual summer thunderstorms that only last about half an hour, this rain will form at the edge of a high pressure mass, where weak winds slow down the system and then almost stand still.
At least 1,800 billion gallons (6.8 billion m3) of rainwater is estimated to have fallen on the Hill Country and Harris Plateau mountains of Texas on the morning of July 4.
"The damage caused by the flood was too catastrophic. This is the worst flooding we have ever seen," said kerrville police officer Jonathan Lamb.
Heavy rain was also recorded in many other places in the area: At Hext, 83mm poured down for 1 hour (from 6am to 7am); At Mason: 67mm for 1 hour (from 5:10 to 6:10am), of which 21mm fell in just 15 minutes; At Brady stream: 136mm for 2 hours (from 0:30 to 2:30am); At Ranch: 60mm for 1 hour.
All this huge amount of water poured into just a few rivers, causing the river water level to rise. The Guadalupe River in the Hunt area alone rose 2.1m to 8.8m in just a few hours. This is the second highest level ever recorded and surpasses the historical flood level in 1987.
The rain is fueled by the circulation of Secretary Secretary Secretary, after making landfall in southeastern Mexico earlier this week and continuing to drift north.
This disaster is reminiscent of another historic flood on the Guadalupe River nearly 40 years ago. On July 16, 1987, 10 teenagers died and 33 others were injured when a bus and a small truck left the summer camp and encountered flash floods caused by 130-250 mm of rain falling on the headwaters of the Guadalupe River. The flash floods hit Ingram, Kerrville and Comfort, forcing hundreds of residents living along the river and its dependencies to evacuate urgently.
