Texas Land Chief Defends Camps After Deadly Flood

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Texas Land Chief Defends Camps After Deadly Flood
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Texas Land Chief Defends Camps After Deadly Flood

In the aftermath of devastating flash floods in Kerr County, Texas, which claimed over 100 lives—including 27 children—Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham defended the affected camps, particularly Camp Mystic, stating, “I think as soon as they had any indication they were doing everything they could.” The Guadalupe River surged 26 feet in just 45 minutes, overwhelming the region with historic flooding.

Just the News reported that Buckingham emphasized the area’s vulnerability: “It's very hilly. It’s very rocky soil... definitely prone to flash floods.” She also noted that cell service limitations hampered warning alerts: “Even if the emergency notices had gone out, a lot of the cell phones aren’t working there anyway.”

Despite federal and state emergency preparations, criticism erupted over the lack of local warning systems. "There’s going to be a lot of finger-pointing," said Rep. Chip Roy, "and I understand that."

Just the News added:

Politicization quickly stained the already tragic incident. Democrats in Congress wasted no time in connecting the tragedy to Trump's budget cuts. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer demanded that the administration conduct an inquiry into whether staffing shortages contributed to “the catastrophic loss of life” in Texas. “Accurate weather forecasting helps avoid fatal disasters,” Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., said in a post on X. “There are consequences to Trump’s brainless attacks on public workers, like meteorologists.”

Contradicting that narrative, in fact, the National Weather Service office in New Braunfels, which delivers forecasts for Austin, San Antonio and the surrounding areas, had extra staff on duty during the storms, an NWS spokesperson told the Associated Press.

“Look for the helpers. There are always people who are helping.” - Fred Rogers

New Jersey native on first rescue mission with Coast Guard helps save 165 Texas flood victims: ‘American hero’ (New York Post)

Kerrville and Austin Pets Alive! save more than 70 pets from Kerr, Williamson and Burnet counties’ fatal floods (KSAT)

United Cajun Navy is en route to assist with flood response (The Kerrville Times)

Kerrville restaurant works to feed displaced Texans, first responders (NewsNation)

Samaritan’s Purse and BGEA deploy relief teams after Texas floods claim more than 100 lives (Christian Daily)