A young camper has recounted the extraordinary moment he and his brother were airlifted to safety by Black Hawk military helicopters after relentless rain triggered severe flooding at a Missouri summer camp.
Benjamin, 11, and Teddy, 9, were among more than 200 campers and staff evacuated Friday from Camp Taum Sauk in Reynolds County, as rising water from the nearby Black River created dangerous, potentially life-threatening conditions.
‘We got to go on a Black Hawk,’ Teddy told NPR. ‘It was very loud and very cool and fast.’
Teddy said being rescued alongside his brother was, from his perspective, ‘really, really fun.’
The intense rainfall stirred fears of a disaster similar to last July’s Camp Mystic tragedy in Texas, where floods killed 25 young campers, two counselors and the camp’s executive director.
The boys’ mother, Ann DeField, said she began receiving a sudden stream of messages from worried parents Friday night about flash flooding near the camp.
DeField called the ordeal a ‘whirlwind,’ adding that she and her husband were far more frightened than their sons appeared to be.
‘When they got home … I couldn’t hug them long enough,’ she told NPR. ‘They were fine. They really just thought it was all a big adventure.’
Ann DeField said her two sons, nine-year-old Teddy and 11-year-old Benjamin, were among those rescued from huge floods at Camp Taum Sauk in Reynolds County, Missouri, on Friday
Eight UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters staffed by approximately 35 crewmembers rescued 202 children and counselors from the summer camp, according to Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe
The once-in-a-thousand years downpour caused as much as 12 inches of rain to fall within a matter of hours overnight, Missouri authorities said
Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe said Friday that eight UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters staffed by approximately 35 crewmembers had rescued 202 children and counselors.
The campers were taken to the Arcadia Valley Elementary School to be reunited with their families, according to Kehoe’s statement.
As much as 12 inches of rain fell within a matter of hours overnight, according to Missouri authorities, prompting a once-in-a-thousand years downpour of rain across the state.
People were rescued from sweeping floodwaters, as well as trees, rooftops and vehicles, the governor’s office said.
‘This effort reflects the very best of our state emergency response teams,’ Kehoe said.
He added: ‘Countless men and women, across multiple jurisdictions, have been working around the clock with one mission in mind: saving lives.’
Campers started being evacuated around 2am on Friday, with dozens of girls in low-lying cabins near the river being woken up and rushed to the camp cafeteria, according to The New York Times.
However, they were soon forced to move again to higher ground near the camp’s tennis courts as the floodwaters continued rising and rapidly moving.
A view of the floodwaters inundating large swaths of southeastern Missouri after huge downpours of rain triggered generational flooding
Missouri Task Force 1, a local urban search-and-rescue team, also deployed 50 members with specialized equipment and rescue boats to help save people
The girls passed the time making bracelets and arts and crafts projects, as well as playing board games.
In the meantime, the boys, who were housed on higher ground, remained in their summer camp cabins, per the outlet.
They listened to the radio and talked as staff continued to monitor the potentially dangerous floodwaters.
Outside the camp, frightened parents exchanged information through group messages as roads gradually became inaccessible due to the rising water.
Some of the other children recalled viewing the unusual helicopter rescue.
‘When I first heard we were getting on helicopters, I was kind of scared,’ Everett Box, 11, told the outlet. ‘Then I kind of warmed up to it and was super excited to go on it.’
It was Everett’s third time attending the summer camp.
Fellow camper Cate Hensley, also 11, said she could no longer tell where the Black River ended and the road began by Friday morning.
Her cabin was left covered in broken glass, preventing her from retrieving her belongings.
However, Cate’s mother, Melissa Hensley, insisted that the scary experience had not changed how her family viewed the camp.
‘This is their happy place,’ she said. ‘They plan for this every single year.’
Missouri authorities reported one death as a result of the torrential flooding. 23-year-old Faith Gregory was found dead on Saturday
Gregory’s body was discovered approximately 1.8 miles downstream from her home (pictured) in Huzzah Creek
A photo posted by Missouri State Emergency Management Agency of what the effort on the ground looked like
In addition to the Black Hawks mentioned by the governor, emergency responders also helped rescue people stranded as a result of the flooding.
Urban search-and-rescue team Missouri Task Force 1 deployed 50 members with specialized equipment and rescue boats, according to St. Louis Public Radio.
At the time, the Black River was expected to crest at a record level of more than 28 feet near Annapolis, about 15 miles southeast of the camp.
As of Sunday, one person had died from the disastrous flooding in Missouri.
Faith Gregory, 23, who had gone missing after floodwaters ripped her home from its foundation in Crawford County, was found dead on Saturday.
Volunteers discovered her body roughly 1.8 miles downstream from her home in Huzzah Creek.
‘This is not the outcome that any of us were hoping for,’ the Crawford County Sheriff’s Office said.
‘Our thoughts and prayers are with Faith’s family, friends, and all those affected by this tragic loss,’ the sheriff’s office added.
Authorities have said that no one else remained unaccounted for in wake of the deluge.
