Texas Flood Tragedy: Death Toll Tops 100 as Search Efforts Continue
The human cost of last week’s catastrophic flash-flooding in central Texas keeps rising. Authorities now confirm at least 104 deaths statewide after torrential overnight storms sent the Guadalupe River surging more than 26 feet (about eight metres) in just 45 minutes early on Friday, 4 July.
Camp Mystic Hit Hard
One of the worst-affected sites was Camp Mystic, a Christian girls’ summer camp on the river’s banks.
- 27 campers and counsellors have been confirmed dead.
- 11 more people connected with the camp—ten girls and one counsellor—remain missing.
Thirteen-year-old Stella Thompson, spending her sixth summer at Camp Mystic, told local station KXAS that girls in cabins higher up the hillside awoke to power outages, pounding rain and helicopters overhead.
Camp leaders ordered them to stay inside while rescuers evacuated lower cabins closer to the river. “It didn’t look like Camp Mystic anymore,” Thompson said, describing kayaks wedged in treetops and debris strewn everywhere.
A Daughter’s Final Message
Among the victims was 21-year-old Joyce Catherine Badon, who had gone to Hunt, Texas, for a get-together with college friends. According to volunteer search leader Louis Deppe, the river undermined the house they were staying in, collapsing it around 4 a.m. Friday. Joyce managed to text her parents a final note—“We’re being washed away”—before her phone went silent. Her body was recovered on Monday.
Joyce’s mother, Kellye Badon, posted on Facebook: “We found our lovely daughter who blessed us for 21 years! We pray to be able to find her three friends soon. God is good!”
County-by-County Losses
Kerr County—home to Camp Mystic—has suffered the heaviest loss, 84 fatalities, up from the 68 reported earlier. Other confirmed deaths include:
| County | Confirmed deaths |
|---|---|
| Kerr | 84 |
| Travis | 7 |
| Kendall | 6 |
| Burnet | 4 |
| Williamson | 2 |
| Tom Green | 1 |
| Total | 104 |
State of Emergency and Ongoing Search
Governor Greg Abbott has declared a state of emergency across the hardest-hit Hill Country counties. Search-and-rescue teams, aided by volunteers, dogs and drones, continue to comb wreckage and riverbanks for the missing, while local hospitals treat survivors for injuries and exposure.
Officials warn the death toll may climb further as floodwaters recede and crews reach previously inaccessible areas.
Remembering the Victims
Families and friends are sharing personal stories of those lost. The Kansas City Chiefs community is mourning nine-year-old Janie Hunt, a relative of team owner Clark Hunt. Eight-year-olds Renee Smajstrla, Sarah Marsha and Eloise Peck, and nine-year-old Lila Bonner have also been named among the deceased.
As vigils are held and relief supplies gathered, communities across Texas—and far beyond—are united in grief, prayer and a resolve to support the survivors of this unprecedented Hill Country disaster.
