Texas, Camp Mystic and flash flood
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4hon MSN
As floodwaters rose in Texas, camp counselors hoisted children onto rafters, carried them to dry ground and sang with them to keep them calm.
Brooklyn and Bailey McKnight's little sister, Paisley, was at a camp on a smaller arm of the Guadalupe River. The 14-year-old was "just miles" away from Camp Mystic in Central Texas, which has been devastated by the deadly floodwaters spurred by extreme rainfall on July 4.
Camp Mystic has deep roots with Texas politicians, including former first lady Laura Bush, who worked as a counselor there, and former President Lyndon B. Johnson, who sent his daughters there.
Glen Lake Camp & Retreat Center is among many summer camps taking a hard look at their emergency preparedness following deadly flash flooding in the Texas Hill Country. The Christian camp for kids in Somervell County, operated by the United Methodist Church since 1939, began reassessing its safety procedures after the recent tragedy.
1don MSN
The American Camp Association advises parents to ask camps about their safety plans, including severe weather protocols and relationships with local emergency services. Some camps, even those far from danger,
The devastating floods that struck central Texas on July 4 have claimed at least 119 lives, with around 170 people still missing. The disaster has been severe in Kerr County, where at least 27 children lost their lives at nearby Camp Mystic.
Search and rescue operations in central Texas entered their fifth day on Tuesday after heavy rainfall overwhelmed the Guadalupe River, sending floodwaters through homes and summer camps and killing over 100 people.
The storms that battered the Hill Country for the last four days began to lighten up, although isolated pockets of heavy rain were still possible.