FEARS loom of more Texas floods as volunteers cleaning up after the deadly torrents hit Camp Mystic have been ordered to evacuate.
A critical advisory has been issued, warning that the anticipated heavy rains may cause additional flooding in the region that has been struggling to recover from weeks of devastating destruction.
Kerr County officials wrote in a terrifying warning: “MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND.”
Volunteers still working through the wreckage of the deadly July 4 flooding are having to evacuate as fears loom of another deluge.
A flood watch is to remain in effect in Kerrville as well as the surrounding area until 7am on Tuesday.
This is where the July 4 floodings resulted in at least 130 deaths – including children at Camp Mystic.
Kerrville officials said: “Most rainfall totals should be in the 1 to 3 inch range, but an isolated total to 6 inches cannot be ruled out.
“Rivers and streams remain elevated and will be capable of rising rapidly with any new downpours.”
Texas already endured heavy rainfall over the weekend as well as flash flooding along the San Saba River.
Kerrville also saw more than four inches of rain within hours on Sunday.
Due to the rainfall, search and rescue operations were postponed in regions along the Guadalupe River, where severe flooding happened on July 4, leaving about 170 individuals still unaccounted for.
The intense rainfall triggered a new flash flood warning, with mobile devices across Kerrville receiving urgent alerts to evacuate as the River surged to perilous levels once more.
Despite the Guadalupe thankfully not flooding over the weekend, rainfall halted searching efforts across the area and were to resume Monday – but more flood danger halted them again.
But this hasn’t stopped some volunteers as they vowed to continue their efforts for those who remain missing.
Deadly flooding tore through Camp Mystic in Kerr County, Texas, on the morning of July 4, striking far earlier than previously believed.
More than 650 girls and staff were sleeping when a flash-flood warning with “catastrophic” potential was issued at 1:14 am.
The water hit hard around 3:00 am, engulfing cabins in a low-lying area near the Guadalupe River known as the Flats.
Photos show the once-lush camp now buried in sludge and debris, with twisted cabins and overturned trunks scattered across the grounds.
More chilling photos of the aftermath in Camp Mystic show empty bunkbeds covered in layers of mud and sediment left behind by the raging water.
Camp security guard Glenn Juenke said he had been throwing girls on top of floating mattresses to prevent them from drowning.
“Each of those sweet girls [were] cold, wet, and frightened – but they were also incredibly brave,” he told CNN.
Another 173 people remain missing as search teams work through the rubble.
Critics say the camp failed to act despite warnings, while some blame federal staffing cuts for slow alerts from the National Weather Service.
The White House has slammed that claim as a “depraved lie.”
FEMA teams have been set up in nearby Center Point, using helicopters, boats, and cadaver dogs to comb through the wreckage.
Texas lawmakers are calling a special session to address emergency communication systems and flood response.
President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania visited the area on Friday.
Gut-wrenching stories from the Texas floods
Piers and Ruffin Boyett
Two brave young brothers were asleep in a cabin at Camp La Junta on the bank of the Guadalupe River when it was hit by a wall of water at 4 am on July 4. The young boys knew instantly that they had to swim to safety.
“The flood started getting bigger,” Piers told ABC affiliate KSAT-TV. “We had bunk beds in our cabins and [the water] was going up to the top bunk and we had no choice – and we had to swim out of our cabin.”
“I had a first-hand view of the flood,” Ruffin, the elder of the two, said. “The cabins were flooding and the walls, they broke down.
“All of the campers in those cabins had to go up on the rafters and wait there until they could swim out.”
Glen Juenke
Juenke, a security guard at Camp Mystic, described having to throw girls on top of floating mattresses to save them from drowning.
“Each of those sweet girls [were] cold, wet, and frightened, but they were also incredibly brave,” he told CNN. “They trusted me, and we leaned on each other through a long, harrowing night together inside their cabin.”
Julian Ryan
The 27-year-old father-of-two died after suffering a horrific gash to his arm while trying to save his family.
Ryan, a restaurant dishwasher, was asleep in his trailer home alongside his mother Marilyn, fiancée Christinia and 6-year-old and 13-month-old children when the floods hit.
“It just started pouring in, and we had to fight the door to get it closed to make sure not too much got in,” Christinia told The New York Times.
Christinia said her fiancé punched through a glass to save them, but the broken edges almost cut his arm clean off.
One of the last things Ryan told his family was, “I’m sorry, I’m not going to make it. I love y’all.”
