A tragic flash flood has struck Camp Mystic, an all-girls Christian summer camp located along the Guadalupe River in Kerr County, Texas. The disaster, which occurred overnight between July 4 and 5, 2025, claimed the lives of 27 people, including teenage counselors and the camp director, Richard Dick Eastland.
Local authorities had previously applied for funding to install updated flood gauges and emergency alert systems after a similar incident in 1987, but those requests were denied. As a result, no warning sirens or river sensors were in place when the recent flood struck. Residents and campers were left to rely solely on alerts from the National Weather Service, which proved to be slow and inconsistent.
A flash flood warning was issued by the National Weather Service at 1:14 a.m. on July 4, describing the situation as life-threatening. Reports suggest that there was a delay of up to 75 minutes before evacuation began, with campers moved into a recreation hall by around 2 a.m. However, new information from Eastland’s family indicates that he may not have received the warning on his phone at all, raising questions about communication failures and technology gaps.
The camp had been built and expanded in an area long recognized as a flood zone. In fact, the management had previously pushed to have some of the buildings removed from federal floodplain maps, allowing further development in risky areas. At least 12 of the camp’s buildings were still within designated flood zones, and nearly all fatalities occurred in these high-risk areas.
This tragedy echoes a deadly flood in 1987 that killed 10 people at another local camp, yet decades later, little had changed in terms of safety infrastructure. The absence of updated systems, combined with ignored warnings and limited emergency protocols, has prompted renewed criticism from the public and experts alike.
Statewide, over 145 people have died in the July floods, with Kerr County suffering the highest toll. More than 100 individuals remain missing. In response, Texas lawmakers have convened a special session to examine flood response systems and propose reforms. There are growing calls for stricter regulations and improved emergency preparedness, especially for camps and facilities located in vulnerable areas.
The Camp Mystic flood has become a powerful reminder of the dangers of underinvestment in disaster readiness. Many are now asking how many lives must be lost before real changes are made. The tragedy has left families grieving and a community questioning how such loss could have been prevented.
