(NewsNation) — The sheriff of Kerr County, Texas, said Friday night that at least two dozen people had been killed by flash flooding and a similar number of young campers remained unaccounted for after torrential rains rapidly pushed the Guadalupe River over its banks.
“What I can confirm at this point: We’re at about 24 fatalities,” Sheriff Larry Leitha said during a news conference with Gov. Greg Abbott. “We’re not going to be giving out any names at this time. We’re still notifying next of kin.”
Between 23 and 25 young campers from Camp Mystic who had been staying near the river remained missing, he said. The Guadalupe River took in months’ worth of rainfall in about two hours, which raised its level more than 20 feet.
Abbott vowed that first responders would search throughout the night to find the missing.
“We remain in a search-and-rescue posture right now,” he said.
Girls from camp unaccounted for
The region is home to many summer camps, but officials said they were able to account for children at all of the other sites.
NewsNation national security contributor Tracy Walder, whose daughter is friends with some of the missing campers, said the relay of information has been a challenge because campers did not have access to technology during their stay at camp.
“Technology is actually not allowed there,” Walder said. “That’s why communication and information is kind of a bit difficult to come by at this point in time.”
President Donald Trump has been in touch multiple times, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said, with offers to provide whatever assistance is needed.
More rain and flooding are also in the forecast for the Waco area.
Roads were flooding in Kerrville, which sits about 60 miles northwest of San Antonio and has a population of around 25,000.
Authorities also said dozens of water rescues had been performed as the rain continued to fall.
Between 5 and 11 inches of rain had fallen by 9 a.m., according to the National Weather Service in Austin and San Antonio, with more rain possible before the storms dissipate Friday afternoon. At one point, the rainfall reached a rate of 4 inches per hour.
The area was put under a flash flood warning. By Friday morning, the Guadalupe River in western Kerr County had reached 29 feet, the second-highest level on record.
The river surpassed flooding levels seen in 1987, when floods killed 10 teenagers near Comfort, Texas.
Officials in Comfort issued an order for mandatory evacuations Friday for residents along the river and in Kerrville as police and firefighters helped get people to safety.
In San Angelo, Texas, photos showed a flooded intersection where water reached the level of street signs, and the weather service office there called the floods life-threatening.
Texas officials activated the National Guard and deployed the state’s Department of Public Safety and other resources to the area to respond to the flooding.
Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly told media outlets that there was no warning regarding the severity of the flood and said the county doesn’t have a warning system.
The National Weather Service had placed the county under a flood watch Thursday night, with a flash flood warning issued around 1 a.m.
