Eleven girls were missing from the camp, which has hosted the daughters of governors and one president. Rescue efforts continued Sunday.
Right along one of the Guadalupe River’s bends, the Christian camp Camp Mystic has been a summertime haven for generations of Texas girls.
But after a sudden flood came crashing through in the early hours of July Fourth, it’s become the site of a tragedy pulling on the hearts of Texans across the state.
Green-roofed cabins housing hundreds of campers and staff dotted the area, which is lush with cypress and live oak trees. This summer, Camp Mystic hosted 750 girls between 7 and 17 years old — that’s more than half of Hunt’s population of around 1,300.
Campgrounds span over 700 acres in the heart of Texas’ Hill Country, making it a peaceful place for girls to spend weeks singing campfire songs and making ceramics. Since they’re right by the river, in between church services, they also learn how to kayak and fish for bass.
By Saturday afternoon, the scene was grim. While buildings were still standing, cars overlapped each other. Inside the cabins, campers‘ belongings that had been left behind were smashed against the windows or strewn on the ground.
That river reached catastrophic levels in less than an hour overnight with little warning, rising 26 feet in just 45 minutes. Fast-moving flood waters swept homes and cars away, and for Camp Mystic, made it difficult for staff to move hundreds of girls to safer ground in the dark.
By Sunday morning, 11 girls and one counselor from Camp Mystic remained missing, local officials said, as search and rescue efforts continued. The flood’s death toll in Kerr County had risen to 59, including 21 children, according to Sheriff Larry Leitha. Another 11 deaths were confirmed in surrounding counties. It’s unknown how many victims were Camp Mystic campers.
Among those who have been confirmed dead is Camp Mystic’s director Richard “Dick” Eastland, according to a Facebook post by his nephew.
