KERRVILLE, Texas (AP) — Many of the voices were frantic and desperate. A few were steady and calm amid mounting, frightening danger, and in some cases, inescapable doom.
They came from families huddled on rooftops to escape rising, swirling waters, mothers panicked for their children's wellbeing, and onlookers who heard pleas for help through the dark as they clung to treetops.
One man, stuck high in a tree as it began to break under the pressure of the floodwaters, asked emergency dispatchers for a helicopter rescue that never came.
Their pleas were part of over 400 calls for help across Kerr County last summer when devastating floods hit during the overnight hours on the July Fourth holiday. The recordings of the 911 calls were released recently.
A camp counselor reported, “There’s water filling up super fast, we can’t get out of our cabin,” as screams echoed from campers in the background.
Amazingly, everyone in the cabin and the rest of the campers at Camp La Junta were rescued. The flooding killed at least 136 people statewide during the holiday weekend, including at least 117 in Kerr County alone. Most were from Texas, but victims also came from Alabama, California, and Florida.
One call came from a woman whose house was threatened by the flood near Camp Mystic, where tragically 25 campers and two junior counselors lost their lives.
“We’re OK, but we live a mile down the road from Camp Mystic and we had two little girls come down the river. And we’ve gotten to them, but I’m not sure how many others are out there,” she said.
Residents reported being caught off guard by the floods, with many stating they did not receive adequate warnings as the Guadalupe River overtopped. Kerr County officials have faced scrutiny regarding their immediate response, with reports that some were asleep during the crisis.
The overwhelming volume of calls forced dispatchers to comfort callers while hastily directing rescue efforts. As families recounted climbing to roofs and higher ground, the urgency in their voices became apparent as the floodwaters continued to rise.
As daylight broke, calls increased from people reporting survivors trapped in trees and on rooftops. Some callers expressed distress for loved ones still in danger.
In a heartbreaking scenario, a woman staying in a riverside cabin told a dispatcher, “We are flooding, and we have people in cabins we can’t get to.”
With each call, it became increasingly evident how quickly the situation was escalating for those caught in the flooding.
Despite the coordinated efforts and numerous rescues, the tragedy left a haunting reminder for communities facing natural disasters: preparedness can be a matter of life and death.
