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The organization facing criticism for a delayed warning before the floods, which have tragically claimed the lives of at least 50 individuals in Texas, had previously experienced significant layoffs in the months leading up to the catastrophe.
A total of 50 people, including 15 children, have lost their lives following the Guadalupe River’s rise to nearly 30 feet above its usual level, wreaking havoc on a children’s summer camp and shattering families.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem faced intense scrutiny over the late warning alerts that Texas residents received before the devastating flash flood impacted the state.
Residents were not warned until 1:18pm on July 3, the day they began, and were told it was ‘moderate’ storms.
Many Texans have blamed the slow updates as part of the reason at least 50 have lost their lives and 27 are still missing.
Finger pointing has landed on the National Weather Service which had recently begun the process of hiring 100 new employees.
However, this came months after around 600 people were fired from the agency in recent months as part of massive cuts to the federal government under Trump, according to NPR.
By April, nearly half of NWS forecast offices had 20 percent vacancy rates.
The agency under fire over a delayed warning ahead of the floods that have killed at least 50 people in Texas had gone through massive job cuts in the months prior to the disaster
Around 600 people were fired from the agency in recent months as part of massive cuts to the federal government under Trump
Noem joined Governor Greg Abbott and other state personnel for a press conference on Saturday, where a journalist grilled the cabinet member on the delayed warning from the National Weather Service.
She blamed the ‘ancient system’ and said the Trump Administration would look into renewing the system to better work for US citizens.
‘The weather is extremely difficult to predict,’ Noem said. ‘But also that the National Weather Service, over the years at times, has done well and at times, we have all wanted more time and more warning and more notification.’
She said the Trump Administration is working to ‘fix’ and ‘update the technology.’
‘We needed to renew this ancient system that has been left in place with the federal government for many, many years and that is the reforms that are ongoing there.’
Noem did not bring up how the Trump Administration had proposed cuts for FEMA and NOAA, both of which help during natural disasters.
The proposal includes cutting NOAA’s weather laboratories that research severe storms, as well as, its hub for climate science coordination and research.
The cuts led to a Florida meteorologist to sound the alarm on what a decimated NWS would do just a month ago.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was brutally grilled over the delayed warning alerts Texas residents received before the monster flash flood was about to devastate the state
NBC 6 hurricane specialist John Morales used a June 3 segment to warn about cuts to both the NWS and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
With the Atlantic hurricane season kicking off on Sunday, Morales warned the budget cuts will impact his ability to predict and track storms.
‘As you’ve grown accustomed to my presentations over my 34 years in South Florida newscast, confidently, I went on TV and told you, “It’s going to turn. You don’t need to worry,”‘ he said.
‘I’m here to tell you I’m not sure I can do that this year, Because of the cuts — the gutting, the sledgehammer attack on science in general.’
Morales claimed the Trump Administration’s cuts will have a ‘multi-generation impact on science in this country’ and advised his viewers to call their representatives.
‘What we’re starting to see is that the quality of the forecasts is becoming degraded,’ he said.
‘There’s also a chance because of some of these cuts that NOAA hurricane hunter aircraft will not be able to fly this year and with less reconnaissance missions may be flying blind. And we may not exactly know how strong a hurricane is before it reaches the coastline.’
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration forecasted last week that this year’s season is expected to bring as many as 10 hurricanes.
A view of a damaged building at Camp Mystic, the site of where nine girls lost their lives after it was deluged by raging flood waters
Meanwhile, Texas continues the rescue effort, as Governor Greg Abbott said the search for survivors will continue 24 hours a day.
‘We will find every one of them,’ he promised on Saturday, while calling the state’s response to the tragedy ‘quintessentially Texas.’
‘When Texas faces a challenge, we come together, we unite,’ he said, while sitting next to Noem.
‘It’s what Texans do, it’s what we will continue to do… We will not stop today or tomorrow, we will stop when it’s finish.’
He also signed a request for federal aid, which Noem said the president is expected to sign.
Earlier today, harrowing images emerged showing the remains of a the leveled summer camp where at least three campers lost their lives after it was deluged by deadly flood waters.
At least three campers were killed when the unprecedented current slammed the camp as the girls slept.
Dozens more people, including other campers, are still missing.
NBC 6 hurricane specialist John Morales (pictured) warned that the Trump Administration’s cuts to federal weather agencies will impact meteorologists’ abilities to accurately forecast
Among those confirmed dead are 15 children, including the three young girls who were attending the popular Hunt, Texas summer camp.
Renee Smajstrla, eight, Janie Hunt, nine, and Sarah Marsh all perished when the camp was washed away by the flood waters.
Among the other confirmed dead are: Jeff Ramsey and Jane Ragsdale, the director of Heart O’ the Hills, another nearby summer camp. And 850 people have been rescued by authorities as of Saturday evening.
Heartbreaking pictures show how the side of the summer camp was completely wrenched away by the floods.
Inside, sodden beds and blankets of the campers can be seen covered in a thick sludge and belongings such as bags and clothing are also seen strewn across the floor.
Another build saw its roof sag over the ruined building as pieces of jagged wood splintered underneath it.
A 27-year-old father, Julian Ryan, also reportedly died while attempting to save his family after water flooded their in nearby Ingram.
As water quickly rose to their knees, Ryan punched a window to get his fiancée, children, and his mother out of the home safely and onto the roof.
A jogger takes a detour around a flooded running path in Louise Hays Park, along the banks of the Guadalupe River
Governor Greg Abbott requested federal aid. Noem said the president is likely to sign it
However, his life-saving punch severed an artery in his arm and ‘almost cut it clean off,’ his fiancée, Christinia Wilson, told KHOU.
Hours later, he told them: ”I’m sorry, I’m not going to make it. I love y’all.’
His body was recovered later that morning after the water receded. The family has since started a GoFundMe to help cover the costs of his funeral services.
Experts have also surfaced fears that Lake Lyndon B. Johnson, which is near Austin, will burst as the Llano River is near its crest and flows quickly toward the body of water.
‘Boaters need to get off the water ASAP. Debris-filled fast-moving water will arrive rapidly,’ CBS Austin Meteorologist, Avery Tomasco, warned.
The river is flowing at a whopping 125,000 cubic-feet-per-second – nearly three times as fast as it was mere hours ago.
The rising river levels come after unprecedented surge of the Guadalupe River.
Parts of the Lone Star State are expected to be lashed by up to five more inches of rain late Saturday, further stoking fears for dozens of people still missing – some areas are even bracing for up to 10 more inches of rain.
Locals worry Lake Lyndon B. Johnson, which is near the Southern city, will burst as the Llano River is near its crest and flowing quickly toward the body of water
Several counties – including Travis and Burnet Counties – remain under a flash flood emergency as flood waters are tearing down homes, sweeping away children, and leaving families devastated.
The loved ones of the missing are desperately begging for help in finding their loved ones.
In lighter news, four Camp Mystic campers feared missing have since been confirmed found by their families – Ella Bennett, a Camp Mystic counselor, and Annie Flack, a camper.
While, two other unidentified campers have also been found and were airlifted to safety.
At least two dozen more still have not been found.
Another survivor was captured in a dramatic rescue after she was swept nearly 12 miles downstream by raging floods.
The terrified youngster was pictured clinging to the branches of a tree as the rapids swelled beneath her.
The girl, who is yet to be identified, was later taken to safety, News 4 San Antonio reports.
Pictured: A dad hugging his daughter tight at a reunification center in Ingram. Twenty-four people died during the massive floods in Texas, most of which were children attending a summer camp. Many more are still missing
The final death toll is expected to rise as dozens remain unaccounted for after the unexpected flood (Pictured: A drone view of flooded houses along the Concho River)
A separate video showed a helicopter airlifting an individual to safety after the unprecedented flooding.
Officials have since launched a massive rescue effort to locate dozens of missing individuals.
As the extensive search efforts continue, identities of the missing have begun to emerge with families sharing photos of their loved ones in hopes of learning information about their whereabouts.
The family of an eight-year-old girl named Renee Smajstrla has confirmed that she was among those who lost her life during the tragic floods.
Her uncle, Shawn Salta, shared on Facebook: ‘We are thankful she was with her friends and having the time of her life, as evidenced by this picture from yesterday. She will forever be living her best life at Camp Mystic.’
Heart O’ the Hills camp was also impacted by the flood path. The camp shared in an announcement on their website that their director and co-owner, Jane Ragsdale, died in the flood.
‘We are mourning the loss of a woman who influenced countless lives and was the definition of strong and powerful,’ Heart O’ the Hills said.
A friend of Jane’s shared their last text exchange on social media, writing to her that she was thinking of the camp as the summertime approached.
Several counties – including Travis and Burnet Counties – are under a flash flood emergency as flood waters are tearing down homes, sweeping away children, and leaving families devastated
‘Aw! Thanks. It’s definitely our time of year, what we love and live for,’ Jane replied.
Heart O’ the Hills added in their statement they weren’t in session during the floods and most of those on the site were accounted for and on high ground.
Terrified parents of those missing said they have been left in limbo as they await news from the ongoing searches.
Officials have stressed they hope to rescue many of the missing and say they’re still hopeful of finding most of those missing safe and well.
Among those named missing: are Linnie McCown, Anna Margaret Bellows, Mary Grace Baker, Greta Toranzo, Lainey Landry, Kelly Anne Lytal, Margaret Sheedy, Virginia Hollis, Cile Stewart, Wynne Naylor, Molly Dewitt, Blakely McCrory, Hadley Hanna, Ella Cahill, Joyce Badon, Reese Manchaca, and Aidan Heartfield.
The sheer scale of destruction – with buildings ripped from their foundations and cars swept away like toys – suggests that may be an overly optimistic prediction.
At a press conference late on Friday evening, Texas Governor Greg Abbott said the floods had been devastating, and declared that ‘we need God more than ever.’
‘It needs God, but it also needs a robust response… searches will continue in the darkness of night, and they will continue’ into the early hours of Saturday, Abbott said.
Rushing water on the Guadalupe River on Saturday. Texas Governor Greg Abbott said the floods had been devastating, and declared that ‘we need God more than ever’
The National Weather Service has warned that Austin is next in line for biblical floods as Kerrville is swamped under dangerously high waters that have swept children down a river, devastated families, and ruined homes
‘We’ll put in everything we have in the entire state.’
At least 14 helicopters, 12 drones and more than 500 people from various units have joined search efforts, Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick said at the press conference.
Over 150 people were airlifted from danger during the extensive search and rescue efforts by Texas authorities throughout Friday.
Officials said at the press conference on Friday night that a total of 237 people were rescued by authorities through the day, with many more still unaccounted for.
The massive flood shocked local officials in Kerr County, with local Judge Rob Kelly admitting that ‘no one knew this kind of flood was coming.’
President Donald Trump also broke his silence on the devastating floods, as he pledged to fully support the ongoing recovery efforts.
‘It’s terrible, the floods, it’s shocking,’ he said late Friday evening.
Trump was asked by reporters if he would provide federal aid to the area, to which he responded: ‘We’ll take care of them.’
‘It’s a terrible thing,’ he added.
Department of Homeland Security Kristi Noem said that the Coast Guard was ‘punching through storms to evacuate Americans from central Texas.
‘We will fly throughout the night and as long as possible. This is what the men and women of the U.S. Coast Guard do,’ she added.
The remarks came as footage from the ongoing searches of the Guadalupe River show a helicopter heroically saving someone from the flood damage.
The footage showed a person being hoisted from the river as one of 14 helicopters deployed during the searches lifted them to safety.
