Searches continue to search for about 2 dozen girls in Texas summer camp after floods were killed at least 27 times

A heavy rain splashed water from Texas's Guadalup River on Saturday, sweeping away a girl's summer camp, killing at least 27 people, including nine children, and leaving two dozen missing, the search continued for survivors.

The destructive power of the rapidly rising waters washes the house and sweeps the vehicles before dawn on Friday.

Authorities said there were hundreds of rescues around Kerr County, including at least 167 helicopters.

The total number of missing persons is unclear, but the sheriff said 23 to 25 of them were girls attending the Christian summer camp Mystic camp on the Riverside River.

During a press conference late Friday, Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha said 27 people have been confirmed to be killed. Authorities said 237 people were rescued.

On social media, parents and family desperately beg for information about loved ones trapped in flood areas.

“The camp was completely destroyed,” said 13-year-old Elinor Lester, one of the hundreds of campers at the mysterious camp. “A helicopter landed and started taking people away. It was really horrible.”

She said a violent storm woke up at around 1:30 a.m. on Friday. Rescuers tied the ropes up for the girls to hold as the children in her cottage walked through a flood on the bridge, which whipped in their calf and knees.

The flooding in the middle of the night during the Fourth of July surprised many residents, campers and officials. The Texas Hill country in northwest of San Antonio is a popular destination for camping and swimming, especially around the summer vacation.

Accuweather said the private forecasting company and the National Weather Service issued a warning about potential flash flooding before the disaster.

“These warnings should provide officials with plenty of time to evacuate Mystic camp and keep people safe,” Accuweather said in a statement. He added that Mount Texas County is one of the most prone areas in the United States due to its terrain and many water crossings.

Officials defended their actions on Friday, saying they did not expect such a strong downpour, which amounted to rainfall in the area.

Helicopters for finding missing drones

Bob Fogarty, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service Austin/San Antonio office, said a Hunt river meter recorded 6.7 meters in about two hours. After recording a level of 9 meters, the instrument failed.

“The water moves so fast that you don't realize how bad it is until you're on you,” Fogarty said.

On the Facebook page of the Kerr County Sheriff’s Office, people posted photos of loved ones and begged for help to find them.

A Texas Lieutenant Colonel has at least 400 people on the ground to help respond. Dan Patrick said. Nine rescue teams, 14 helicopters and 12 drones were used; some were rescued from trees.

In Ingram, Erin Burgess woke up at 3:30 a.m. 20 minutes later, rain and rain woke up, and water was pouring into her home. She described a painful hour clinging to the trees, waiting for the water to recede so that they could walk the mountain to their neighbor's home.

“My son and I floated on the tree we hung above, my boyfriend and my dog ​​floated. He got lost for a while, but we found them.”

“Thankfully, he is over 6 feet tall. That's the only thing that saved me is to hang on him,” Burgess said in her 19-year-old son.

Matthew Stone, 44, of Kerrville, said police crashed into the door at 5:30 a.m. but he received no warning on the phone.

“We don't have an emergency alarm,” Stone said. Then, “a black wall of death. ”

“I was scared to death”

In a reunion center established in Ingram, families cried and cheered as their loved ones got out of vehicles equipped with evacuees. Two soldiers carried an old woman who could not fall down the ladder. Behind her, a woman in a dirty T-shirt clutched a little white dog tightly.

Later, a girl in a white “Camp Mystic” T-shirt and white socks stood in a puddle and cried in her mother's arms.

Barry Adelman, 54, said Water pushed everyone in his three-story house into the attic, including his 94-year-old grandmother and nine-year-old grandson. Before finally retreating, the water begins to pass through the attic floor.

“I'm scared,” he said. “I had to look at my grandson's face and tell him that everything would be fine, but I was afraid of death inside.”

The forecast requires rain and flood surveillance escalated to overnight with at least 30,000 people. But in some places the total is higher than expected, Fogati said.

Patrick noted that the potential of heavy rain and floods covers a large area.

“It's all about getting their heads rained, and we're not sure where it's going to land,” Patrick said. “Obviously it was dark last night and we went into the early hours of the hour-that was when the storm started to zero.”

When asked how to inform people in Kerr County so they can be safe, the county’s chief officer Judge Rob Kelly said: “We don’t have a warning system.”

When journalists pushed for why no more precautions were taken, Kelly said: “Don’t worry, no one knows this flood is coming.”

Popular tourist areas that are prone to flooding

Austin Dickson, CEO of the Texas Mountain Rural Community Foundation, said the area is known as the “Flood Lane” because of the thin layers of soil in the hills.

“When it rains, the water doesn't get into the soil,” Dixon said. “It's heading up the hill.”

River tourism is a key part of Hill's national economy. Dickson said that the century-old summer camp is known to attract children from all over the country.

“It’s usually a very peaceful river that people have been attracted to for generations.”