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Mourners gather in Kerrville to honor lives lost in floods
Hundreds gathered this evening in Kerrville for a vigil to honor the lives lost in the flood.
Community members scattered across the stands of the football stadium at Tivy High School, some smiling and hugging, others wiping away tears.
Beneath a cloudy sky with patches of sunlight, families prayed and sang Christian worship songs with outstretched arms.
Though mentions of the flood itself were scarce, speakers emphasized the community’s love and support for one another since the tragedy Friday.
When the vigil ended, many families gathered on the football field. Teenagers embraced one another while toddlers ran around the turf.
A more solemn group remained in the stands, speaking in soft tones or taking in the scene in silence.
“I was just born and raised here, and I needed to see Jesus tonight,” said Leah Clemons, who is friends with a camp counselor who is still missing.
“We’re praying for her,” she said through tears, adding: “I feel so protected and safe out here, and then this. But what do you do? It’s a natural disaster.”
Many community members mourned the loss of Reece Zunker, a beloved high school soccer coach who died in the flood along with his wife, Paula. Their two children are still missing.
“He really taught the boys how to be bright young men,” said Luke Harper, a Kerrville resident for the last 25 years.
“It’s sad more than anything else — really good people that you knew, and then lives too young lost,” Harper said. “I doubt there are very many people in town that didn’t know somebody that was killed in the flood.”
Texas Gov. Abbott announces special session agenda
Abbott today announced a special legislative session that will begin July 21 and include 18 agenda items, many of which appear to be aimed at strengthening the state's disaster response in the event of future flooding.
“There is more work to be done, particularly in the aftermath of the devastating floods in the Texas Hill Country," Abbott said. "We must ensure better preparation for such events in the future.”
The agenda will focus on flood warning systems and communications, natural disaster preparedness and recovery, and it will also look to provide relief funding for communities affected by the floods, Abbott said.
Volunteer fire chief tried to run toward rising flood but had to turn around
Lee Pool, the volunteer fire chief in Hunt, drove toward the danger early Friday but then had to run from it.
He jumped out of bed and into his clothes before he got into his truck and drove west on Texas Highway 39. He hit a crossing and called back to the sheriff’s dispatcher, confirming that the river was indeed flooding, and in a big way.
He tried to get back home but got cut off because the water was rising so fast. He said he called his wife and told her he was trapped.
“I didn’t think it was going to be my last call to [my wife]. There was a house on a hill behind me, and I said, ‘Worst case, I’m going to abandon my truck and I’m going to this house to be safe,’” Pool said.
He ended up having to use that plan.
Despite the rising waters, which he said he thinks peaked while he was out, his truck was not taken by the floods.
Pool works as an assistant principal and has been coordinating volunteers, donations and searches since the flood. He said so many donations have come in that he has had to search for places to store everything but that by today, more people affected by the storm were arriving to pick up the things they need.
Longtime Camp Mystic counselor says no one is to blame
A seasoned Camp Mystic counselor said no one is to blame for the 27 deaths at the beloved all-girls summer camp amid growing questions about whether local officials were prepared and whether the emergency response was adequate.
“That was an incredible act of nature, an act of God, and there’s nothing anybody could have done,” said Dr. Holly Lacour, 30, who has been involved with the camp for 15 years.
Lacour, who was not working at the camp during last week’s flood, was a counselor for six years, most recently last summer.
During those years, she said, counselors underwent emergency training at the start of the summer, before the young campers arrived. Cellphones are not allowed because participants are encouraged to detach from screens and be present, Lacour said, so counselors are taught to listen to the PA speaker systems.
“We learned pretty much to stay calm and all of the instructions will be coming from the front office,” she said.
Lacour said flooding had never been a fear of hers, because the cabins are tall and “very far away from the water.”
“It rains there plenty,” she said, “but no one could have possibly predicted the surge.”
Lacour said her job as an emergency room resident prevented her from being a counselor this summer, but she said she wished she had been there to help.
“Mystic is my happy place. It’s my favorite place in the world. If you say close your eyes and go to your happy place, that’s it,” she said. “I don’t think there are any words to describe how terrible it feels and how hard you pray afterward.”
Doctor says search-and-rescue efforts have shifted to recovery
Search-and-rescue operations along the Guadalupe River are shifting to a recovery phase, meaning hope of locating survivors has dwindled, said Dr. Rajeev Fernando, chief medical officer of Heal-Corp, a nonprofit organization providing emergency aid in Kerr County.
“The first 72 hours, we were here on the scene right away to save lives,” he said. “But as time goes on, the recovery takes precedence, unfortunately.”
Among the survivors, Fernando said, the most common injuries he has seen include cuts and lacerations, which may get infected by contaminated water. He has also seen fractures and spine injuries — including some that resulted in paralysis — from contact with cars or trees floating downstream, he said.
Heal-Corp’s search-and-rescue operations, which assist the state’s emergency response effort, stretch miles and miles along the river, Fernando said.
“It just keeps expanding all the time ... because of the debris, which keeps pulling all the bodies down,” he said. “We keep getting updates all the time: Can you go farther downstream?”
Former Kerr County commissioner warned flood warning system was ‘antiquated’ in 2016
Former Kerr County Commissioner Tom Moser described the county’s flood warning system as “simply pretty antiquated” and “marginal at the best” back in 2016.
“It serves some purposes, but it’s not what we should have,” Moser said, according to a transcript of the May 9, 2016, county commissioners meeting.
“I think the fact that we are probably the highest risk area in the state for flooding, and this is not to say we need to do it,” he said. “The indications are that we could improve it.”
At the time, he suggested having a workshop with the county and the Upper Guadalupe River Authority, noting that “we both have full responsibility for the entire county for this type of system.”
Moser also said he and others viewed Comal County’s system, which included sensors in the river at major crossings that monitored water levels and set off alarms if it reached a certain level to notify the correct people.
8-year-old Camp Mystic camper confirmed dead
Mary Kate Jacobe, 8, of Houston, died in the floods, her family said in a statement.
"Our precious angel baby has entered the gates of Heaven. Mary Kate Jacobe was the light of our lives. She was tiny but mighty, full of love and joy with a smile that melted your heart. Mary Kate, our Sissy, was the baby of our large family and was most certainly our angel on earth. We are utterly shattered and forever changed by the loss of our girl," the Jacobe family said.
"Our family extends our deepest sympathy to all those affected by the tragic flooding. We stand united by loss but rooted in love. May God be with you now and always," the statement added.
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin's family was rescued in Texas floods
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin said his family was rescued in the floodwaters that killed more than 100 people in central Texas.
Youngkin said the floods that struck Hunt early Friday stranded his wife, Suzanne Youngkin, and other family members at a property near the Guadalupe River, according to NBC affiliate WWBT of Richmond.
“My family was there, along with friends, and by the grace of God, my family was safe,” he said. “I have to say there was moments when they weren’t. They ended up being safe during the day.”
Public access to recreation on the Comal and Guadalupe rivers reopens
Recreation access to the Comal and Guadalupe rivers in New Braunfels reopened at 11 a.m. CT today, according to the city.
"Debris has been cleaned up by city staff; however, river-goers should be very cautious about debris that may not be visible under the water’s surface. And, as always, the City of New Braunfels encourages the use of life vests while participating in any water-related activity," city Communications Manager David Ferguson said.
Leander student confirmed dead by high school; his stepmother and sister remain missing
Braxton Jarmon, a student at Glenn High School in Leander, died in the floods, his school said in a statement.
"Braxton was entering his sophomore year. At this time, his sister Felicity, also a Glenn student, and their step-mom are still missing. Search and rescue efforts are ongoing, and our thoughts remain with her and the entire Jarmon family and their friends during this incredibly difficult time," Principal Josh Haug said in a statement.
The school said the district’s counseling services team will support any student or family in need and will have counselors and social workers available in person at the school on Tuesday.
"This unimaginable loss leaves us with heavy hearts," Haug said. "Thank you for keeping Braxton and the Jarmon family in your hearts. We will continue to honor his memory together, as a Grizzly family."
