Girls aged 8 and 9 are among at least 43 victims killed in flash flooding in Texas, as rescue teams continued searching for dozens of missing children.
Eight-year-old Renee Smajstrla is among nine children confirmed dead in the devastating flash floods.
She had been “having the time of her life” with her friends when floods swept through Camp Mystic, a Christian all-girls summer camp along the Guadalupe River, her family said.
“Renee has been found and while not the outcome we prayed for, the social media outreach likely assisted the first responders in helping to identify her so quickly,” Shawn Salta, Renee’s uncle, wrote on Facebook.
He added: “We are thankful she was with her friends and having the time of her life, as evidenced by this picture from yesterday. She will forever be living her best life at Camp Mystic. Please continue to pray for the other families in Kerrville.”
The mother of 9-year-old Janie Hunt, who was also at Camp Mystic, told CNN that her daughter was among those killed.
Anne Hunt told the broadcaster on Friday she had been prayin” for Janie’s safe return.
On Saturday, emergency teams were searching for the children still unaccounted for after the river rose eight metres in 45 minutes overnight on Friday.
Footage showed communities consumed by water, with homes and cars washed away in the deluge.
Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha said of the 43 people confirmed dead, 15 were children and 28 were adults.
The total number of missing people was not known but one sheriff said about 24 of them were girls who had been at Camp Mystic.
As helicopters and drones searched for victims and those stranded, parents and families posted photos of missing loved ones with pleas for information.
Twenty-seven children were reported missing from Camp Mystic, said Dalton Rice, the Kerrville city manager.
“I want to tell you and assure y’all that we will not stop till every single person is found,” Leitha said.
“We’ve got all the resources we need. We’re here for the long haul. As I said, numbers will be changing rapidly.”
Jane Ragsdale, the camp director at Heart O’ the Hills Camp in Hunt, was also named among the victims.
Ragsdale, who had been co-owner of the camp since 1976, was described by Heart O’ the Hills as “a woman who influenced countless lives and was the definition of strong and powerful”.
A 22-year-old woman was rescued clinging to a tree above rushing water after she was dragged 30km down the river, Ken5S reported.
Donald Trump said his administration was working with state and local officials to respond to the “tragic flooding”, and Kristi Noem, the secretary of homeland security, would visit the region.
“Melania and I are praying for all of the families impacted by this horrible tragedy,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“Our brave first responders are on site doing what they do best.”
Joe Herring Jr, Kerrville’s mayor, told a press conference: “People need to know, today will be a hard day”.
More than 700 children were at Camp Mystic and most were evacuated to higher ground, where they awaited rescue without power, Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick said.
On Saturday afternoon (local time), more heavy rain was expected with flash flood warnings issued for parts of central Texas.
“The camp was completely destroyed,” said Elinor Lester, 13, one of hundreds of campers at Camp Mystic. “A helicopter landed and started taking people away. It was really scary.”
A raging storm woke up Elinor’s cabin just after midnight on Friday, and when rescuers arrived, they tied a rope for the girls to hold as they walked across a bridge with floodwaters whipping around their legs, she said.
The flooding in the middle of the night on the Fourth of July holiday caught residents, campers and officials by surprise.
Officials defended their preparations for severe weather and their response but said they had not expected such an intense downpour that was the equivalent of months’ worth of rain for the area.
One National Weather Service forecast this week had predicted only between three and six inches of rain (7-15cm), said Nim Kidd, the chief of the Texas Division of Emergency Management.
One river gauge near Camp Mystic recorded a 6.7m rise in about two hours, said Bob Fogarty, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service’s Austin/San Antonio office. The gauge failed after recording a level of 8.9m.
“The water’s moving so fast, you’re not going to recognise how bad it is until it’s on top of you,” Fogarty said.
Greg Abbott, the governor of Texas, told reporters that “this is a time when we as a state, as a community, need God more than ever.”
One woman whose home is across from the river survived by clinging to her son.
Erin Burgess woke to thunder and rain in the middle of the night. Water began pouring into her home 20 minutes later, she said.
She spent an hour clinging to a tree and waiting for the water to recede enough to walk up the hill to a neighbour’s home.
“My son and I floated to a tree where we hung onto it, and my boyfriend and my dog floated away. He was lost for a while, but we found them,” she said.
Of her 19-year-old son, she said: “Thankfully he’s over 6ft [1.8m] tall. That’s the only thing that saved me, was hanging on to him.”
- Additional reporting: Agencies