Texas flash floods kill 43, including nine children

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Authorities said Saturday that at least 43 people, including 15 children, have been confirmed dead after a flash flood in Central Texas, when rescue workers continued to search for the missing persons of cameras, holidays and residents.

Officials said the number of casualties is likely to increase, as other counties in the area were also affected by the floods. Travis County’s Public Information Officer Hector Nito confirmed four deaths from the flood there, in which 13 others report missing.

Officials said more than 850 people were rescued – some of which were found in the trees – after the sudden storm, it received 15 inches around the Gawadalpa River northwest of San Antonio.

The missing persons included 27 girls from the Camp Sufi Summer Camp, Kerwel City manager Delton Rice said at a press conference Saturday evening, adding that others could be reckoned.

Rice said, “We are seeing it in two ways – known lost, which is 27 … We will not put a number on the other side because we do not know.”

On Friday morning, the devastation spread rapidly when heavy forecasts caused the river level to 29 feet.

“We know the rivers increase, but no one has seen it,” said Rob Kelly, a senior elected official of the region.

Ker County Sheriff Larry Litha said 17 of the certified men – including five children – are still identified.

The US National Weather Service said that the Flash flood emergency has ended for a large -scale flood center for Kerr County, which earned a feet of rainfall after thunderstorms early Friday.

However, a flood watch, said NWS weather forecasts in the city of Maryland, a flood watch, until 7pm on Saturday evening, San Antonio Austin, Texas, the region from 7pm, said the NWS weather forecast at the College Park in Maryland.

US President Donald Trump said the federal government was working with state and local officials to respond to the flood. “Melania and I are praying for all families affected by this horrific tragedy,” he said on social media. Our brave first respondents are doing what they do. “

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif also expressed his grief over the loss of lives in the tragic flash flood on his X account, “A similar incident happened in North West Pakistan a few days ago, we can fully understand the pain and suffering of the bereaved families.”

Delton Rice, County Seat City Manager, Delton Rice told reporters on Friday that there was a lot of floods, which had not caused little or no warning early in the morning, which prevented authorities from issuing advance evacuation orders because the Gadalpalpal was rapidly a big flood.

“This happened with a very short time, which could not be predicted, even with the radar,” Rice said. “This happened in less than two hours.”

State Emergency Management officials warned early Thursday that Western and Central Texas “faced threats of heavy rains and floods in the next two days, citing national seasonal services predicted before the weekend.”

The weather forecast, however, told a news conference on Friday night, however, “We saw that the amount of rainfall was not predicted.”

According to a summary of a 1987 storm’s National Climate Services Program, the end of the weekend has echoed a catastrophic flood 40 years ago near the Gwadalpe River, where a bus and a van from a church camp were experiencing flood waters and 10 young people escaped. It was reported that hundreds of people were evacuated.

‘Full shock’

According to Patrick, at the time of the flood, 700 girls lived at the Century Christian Girls’ Camp Camp Sofia Camp. Another girls ‘camp, Heart O’ The hills, said on their website that Jean Ragsdel, the co -operative in the flood, had died, though there was no camp as it was in the middle of the session.

Relaxed, a town about 40 miles from the camp mystical, a town – more than 60 feet long trees – shattered on the edge of the streets and rivers. Although the main highway from San Antonio to the flood -hit areas remained mostly, several two lane bridges were severely damaged.

A Reuters photographer reported to see about 10 cars – with some broken windscreen and doors – the flood waters were swept away and left near the river.

“Full shock. I’m still in shock,” Tonia Fuki, 52, from Pennsylvania, said she was living comfortably with her grandmother. “The disaster was such that I am still in shock. And with the rescue, along with helicopters, you know that there are many missing children and missing people. You just want them to be found for the sake of families. But, you know, it will not be a good end. It is not that people can avoid water fast.”

Texas Governor Greg Abbott said during a briefing that he had asked President Donald Trump to sign a declaration of disaster, which would unlock federal aid for the victims. US Homeland Security Secretary Christie Nim said Trump would respect the request.

Earlier on Saturday, Trump said he and his wife Melania were praying for the victims. “Our brave first respondents are doing what they do better,” he said on social media.

Earlier, Trump has outlined plans to reduce the federal government’s role in responding to natural disasters, and has imposed more responsibility on individual states.

Videos posted online showed bare concrete platforms where houses were once standing and piles of rubble along the river. Local media reported rescuers to pull people through roofs and trees, sometimes creating human chains to remove them from flood waters.

Officials said that there was a flood before Friday morning, which causes little or no warning, which makes it impossible to issue in advance of evacuation, as the Gwadalpe River has increased from a major flood phase in less than two hours.

Naum said a “moderate” flood watch issued yesterday by national weather services did not properly predict the heavy rainfall. He said the Trump administration is working to improve the warning system.

The administration has reduced thousands of jobs of the National Weather Service, the National Ocean and Wammandi Administration (NOAA), the main agency of the National Weather Service, which has left many weather offices short staff, the former Director of the NOAA said. He added that although it is unclear whether these deductions have affected the Texas flood warnings, they will undoubtedly deteriorate the agency’s ability to provide accurate and timely predictions.

“People will be compromised with the ability to prepare these storms,” ​​he said. Undoubtedly, this means that extra lives will be lost and maybe more damage to property. “