Texans gather for prayer vigils to honor those affected by the deadly flood
Prayers were offered to victims of the Kerr County flood. Searching for people who are still missing has entered the fourth day.
The Carville, Texas community, destroyed last week by a catastrophic flood of the Guadalupe River, laments its loss as rescuers continue their tough job of recovering the bodies of missing victims.
Heavy rain overwhelmed the river, killing 119 people in at least a week since the early morning hours of July 4th drove homes and youth camps.
Approximately 170 people are still missing statewide, declining with each day they want to find someone else alive, and Kerr County officials say they have not been doing “live rescues” since the day of the flood. Among the missing persons are five campers, a counselor from their beloved Christian Girls Camp and Camp Mystic.
Carr County officials and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott have pledged that the search crew will continue to work until all missing persons are found. They are also faced with harsh questions about who should blame for a small notification of flood warnings.
On Wednesday evening, the crowd gathered at Kerrville High School to pray for the victims and pray for their missing.
“The Kingdom of God appears to be walking along the riverbanks to clear the road,” said Josh Smithson, a resident of Kerrville, who is director of Young Life, a Christian youth outreach organization, on the all-night stand. “The Kingdom of God appears to be together in the time of need.”
Abbott released his agenda for a special session for Texas lawmakers, scheduled to begin later this month, saying the topic includes looming questions raised by the fatal floods of July 4th.
After the end of a regular Texas Legislature session, and before the start of the next session, special sessions discussing topics he advocates as priorities may be called by the governor. The session is scheduled to begin on July 21st, Abbott said.
“There’s more to do, especially in the aftermath of the devastating floods in Texas Hill Country. We need to be prepared for such events in the future,” Abbott said.
On his agenda, Abbott included four items related to flooding. They are:
- “Flood warning system: Laws to improve early warning systems and other preparatory infrastructure in flooded areas in Texas.
- Flood Emergency Communication: Acts that strengthen emergency communications and other response infrastructure in flood-related areas in Texas.
- Relief funds for the floods in Hill Country: Act that provides relief funds for response and recovery from the storm, launched in early July 2025.
- Natural disasters Preparation and recovery: Laws that evaluate and streamline rules and regulations to speed up preparation and recovery for natural disasters. ”
His agenda also includes topics such as THC, abortion and rezoning.
Dry weather finally arrives at Hill Country
The offices of the National Weather Service, serving Austin and San Antonio, are expected to expect on Thursday the much-anticipated dry conditions across the Texas region, where flood-damaged throughout the rest of the week.
The break in the rainy storm conditions comes after flash floods continued to threaten recovery efforts until Wednesday night. Kerr County issued a Code Red Flash Flood Alert from 8pm Wednesday evening to 8pm local time, with additional rainfall expected and risk of more flash floods in already saturated areas.
The drier conditions are expected to last until Friday before more rainfall, as weekend forecasts. Accuweather may be isolated until the end of this week, with a pop-up storm. The search crew concerns have shifted to heat, with temperatures like feel could pass through triple girders, the outlet said.
