2025-07-15T16:38:38Z

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The head of a Christian girls’ camp in Texas, where 27 campers tragically lost their lives due to sudden and severe flooding, has come under scrutiny for delaying evacuation procedures after receiving a flood warning. Richard Eastland, aged 70, had managed Camp Mystic alongside his family since the 1980s. The camp, located adjacent to the Guadalupe River, was overwhelmed by intense flash floods on July 4, resulting in catastrophic consequences.

According to reports by the Guardian, a family spokesperson for Camp Mystic, Jeff Carr, revealed that Eastland received an emergency alert from the National Weather Service at 1:14 a.m. This message warned of life-threatening flash flooding conditions. However, evacuation procedures were not initiated until 2:30 a.m. By this time, heavy rains had already begun, causing water levels to rise dangerously.

At the time of the flood, around 700 girls were attending the camp. Alarmingly, two teenage counselors disclosed that campers and staff were required to surrender their mobile phones during their stay, leaving many unaware of the flood warnings that could have been communicated more effectively.

Carr explained that Eastland spent a considerable amount of time discussing the situation with family members who lived on the 725-acre campgrounds after receiving the flood alert. It was noted that the emergency notification did not explicitly include an evacuation order, which typically falls under the jurisdiction of local government authorities.

Communication among the staff occurred via walkie-talkies until Eastland deemed the situation critical, particularly for the dormitories nearest to the riverbank that housed the youngest campers. Tragically, Eastland lost his life while attempting to evacuate a group of young girls in his truck. The Washington Post reported that many counselors present were teenagers themselves, and they had to make life-altering decisions without adult supervision.

Carr shared details of the events to counteract speculation surrounding the tragedy. He emphasized the importance of transparency regarding the decisions leading up to the disaster. “It will be important to go through this process and avoid sharing information on a piecemeal basis,” he stated after a family meeting on Sunday.

While some actions taken by the camp staff have been clarified, numerous questions persist. The Post noted that the Hunt volunteer fire department, which was the closest emergency response unit to Camp Mystic, did not receive any distress calls from the camp during the flooding incident.

Additionally, families of several campers reported that they did not receive any communication from camp staff regarding the unfolding crisis until they received an email shortly before 11:30 a.m. on the day of the tragedy.

The search for missing persons has been hampered by concerns about additional rainfall and potential flash flooding. In a Kerr County commission meeting held on Monday, officials provided new insights into the disaster's magnitude. “We’ve heard accounts of trailer after trailer after trailer being swept into the river with families in them. [We] can’t find the trailers; we don’t know how many of them there are,” shared County Judge Rob Kelly. He added that one trailer was discovered buried in gravel, 27 feet below the river’s surface.

Rescue crews are employing sonar technology to scour the river and neighboring lakes for additional vehicles, while draining two reservoirs connected to the river to aid in their search efforts. According to CNN, Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha indicated that recovery operations could extend for as long as six months. As of Monday, the death toll from this devastating flood stands at a staggering 131.