Tragedy in Texas Hill Country: At Least 119 Dead, 173 Missing After Devastating Floods
- Rahaman Hadisur
- Jul 14
- 2 min read
Hadisur Rahman, JadeTimes Staff
H. Rahman is a Jadetimes news reporter covering the USA
Search and rescue teams continued their grim task on Wednesday morning, combing through the flood-ravaged Texas Hill Country for signs of life or loss as the death toll from the catastrophic July 4 floods climbed to at least 119. Officials fear that number could rise sharply, with 173 individuals still unaccounted for statewide, including 161 in hard-hit Kerr County alone.
The Guadalupe River, typically a serene fixture in this scenic region, transformed into a deadly torrent nearly a week ago, sweeping away campgrounds, trailer parks, and summer camps. Among the victims are at least 36 children, many of them attending Camp Mystic, a Christian summer camp for girls. As of Tuesday evening, five campers and a 19-year-old counselor remained missing.
“Emergency services throughout Kerr County promptly responded to the recent emergency as the situation unfolded,” said Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha at a Wednesday news conference. “If improvements need to be made, improvements will be made.”
Yet, local and state officials are now facing mounting scrutiny over their preparedness and response efforts. When asked about the potential investigations, Texas Governor Greg Abbott dismissed the criticism as the “words of losers,” drawing a controversial comparison between disaster response and football: “Only losing teams focused on their failures,” he said.
Despite the deflection, the scale of the disaster is becoming clearer. Governor Abbott, speaking Tuesday evening, offered the first comprehensive statewide figure of the missing, revealing the grim possibility that the final death toll could more than double.
“The primary job right now continues to be locating everybody who was affected by this flood,” Abbott said. “We will not stop until we identify, recover every single body.”
Questions are also growing about the adequacy of the region's flood alert and warning systems. At Wednesday's briefing, reporters pressed officials on whether the absence of river-specific alert systems had contributed to the tragedy. Sheriff Leitha responded, “Those are important questions. We will answer those questions. I wish y’all would bear with me in that.”
The flooding has impacted several counties across Central Texas:
Kerr County: 95 confirmed deaths, including 36 children.
Travis County: 7 deaths.
Kendall County: 8 deaths.
Burnet County: 5 deaths.
Williamson County: 3 deaths.
Tom Green County: 1 death.
Victims include children, parents, camp counselors, a beloved local teacher, and summer camp directors—shattering families and communities across the state.
In honor of the lives lost, Governor Abbott ordered all Texas flags to be flown at half-staff through July 14. “Texas stands united in mourning and in our resolve to support those who strive to heal and recover,” he said.
As the state begins to reckon with one of the deadliest flood events in recent decades, especially for children, the urgent calls for answers, accountability, and reform will only grow louder. For now, though, the focus remains on the search for the missing, for closure, and for a path forward.
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