Karoline Leavitt fiercely condemned accusations connecting President Donald Trump to the catastrophic Texas floods, calling them a “depraved lie” at an intense White House briefing.
The press secretary responded strongly after journalists highlighted staffing reductions at the National Weather Service during Trump’s tenure, suggesting a connection to the disaster’s magnitude.
These assertions come amid increasing examination of vacancies in two of the most affected NWS offices in San Angelo and San Antonio. However, Leavitt insisted that holding Trump responsible “serves no purpose” amid a national crisis.
The New York Times reported that key positions at the NWS offices in San Angelo and San Antonio were vacant at the time of the storm.
Leavitt called the accusations “politically motivated” and said pointing fingers at the president “serves no purpose during this time of national mourning.”
According to experts, staffing shortages may have impacted coordination with local emergency teams as the torrential rainfall hit.
She insisted the NWS “did its job” and issued accurate alerts well before the waters surged in the early hours of the morning.
“To any person who has deliberately lied about these facts surrounding this catastrophic event, you should be deeply ashamed,” she said.
The flash floods ripped through parts of Texas over the Fourth of July weekend, killing over 100 people and leaving several others missing.
Hardest hit were areas in the Texas Hill Country, often called “flash flood alley,” including Kerr County, where a group of girls at a summer camp remain unaccounted for.
Among the dead are at least 11 girls and their counselors from the Camp Mystic, an all-girls Christian camp in Kerr County.
The entire group from the Bubble Inn cabin – 13 girls and two counselors – was swept away when a wall of water slammed into the camp early Friday morning.
The San Angelo NWS office was reportedly missing a forecaster, a senior hydrologist, and its leading meteorologist.
In Kerr County, where dozens of deaths were recorded, there was no flood warning system in place, local officials confirmed.
According to the NYT, local authorities had considered installing a formal flood alert system as early as 2015, and again in 2017, but rejected the idea due to cost concerns, according to county meeting records.
A $1 million grant application to fund the project failed, and officials continued relying on word-of-mouth alerts.
Texas Flash Floods: Timeline
Thursday, July 3
- 1:18 p.m. – NWS issues flood watch for Kerrville and surrounding areas, forecasting 5–7 inches of rain
Friday, July 4
- 1:14 a.m. – Flash flood warning issued for parts of Kerr County
- 4:03 a.m. – Flash flood emergency issued for Kerr County
- 4:45 a.m. – Water level at Guadalupe River in Kerrville hits 23.4 ft (before town-specific alert)
- 5:34 a.m. – Flash flood emergency issued for Kerrville
- Midday – 107 game wardens & aviation units begin rescues at Camp Mystic
Rainfall & Impact
- Up to 15 inches of rain fell — double the forecast
- River gauge failed between 4:45 a.m. and 7:45 a.m., missing key data
- At least two summer camps located in known FEMA floodways
- Camp Mystic: 11 confirmed dead, 4 still missing (as of Monday)
- Camp La Junta: All accounted for
Source: CNN
“Taxpayers won’t pay for it,” Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly said recently.
Leavitt defended the agency’s efforts, saying alerts gave residents “up to three-hour lead times” ahead of the flooding.
“The alerts imminently were sent out before the flood when people were sleeping because the flood hit in the very early hours of the morning,” Leavitt said.
“That was an act of God,” she said of the disaster.
“It is not the administration’s fault that the flood hit when it did.”
She added: “There were early and consistent warnings.”
Many local residents reported they never received emergency alerts or didn’t realize the severity.
CBS News found that while the NWS issued 22 escalating warnings in Kerr County, no alerts were sent by local officials.
President Trump, speaking on Sunday, denied that NWS vacancies were to blame, saying simply: “They didn’t.”
He also suggested the “water situation” was linked to former President Joe Biden’s policies, but quickly walked it back.
“I wouldn’t blame Biden for it either,” Trump said.
He added he would “probably” visit the flood-struck region on Friday.
Texas leaders instead turned the blame back on federal agencies, accusing the NWS of underestimating rainfall levels in the region.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has now called for a federal probe.
He asked the Commerce Department’s inspector general to investigate whether NWS staffing issues delayed forecasts or contributed to the death toll.
Texas Democrat Representative Joaquin Castro said over the weekend that while it’s unclear whether the NWS cuts directly affected the government’s flood response, the issue still deserves investigation.
“I don’t think it’s helpful to have missing key personnel from the National Weather Service,” he told CNN.
The tragedy has drawn comparisons to a 1987 flood in the same region that killed 10 teenagers at a nearby Christian camp.
That disaster unfolded after 12 inches of rain fell near Hunt, Texas, sending floodwaters surging through campsites and catching hundreds of campers off guard.
Meteorologist Cary Burgess told Newsweek noted that these kinds of floods often follow similar patterns and tend to hit during summer months with tropical remnants.
He added that the Guadalupe River flows rapidly over limestone, “so it acts like concrete or a street,” worsening flash flooding when it rains heavily.
Despite repeated disasters, experts say few added safety measures have been put in place over the years.
Wimberley, located 75 miles east of Kerrville, installed a modern system after a 2015 flood, including cell towers to broadcast flood alerts, but Kerr County never followed suit.
