Texas Floods of July 2025

On the second of July, 2025, the Texas Division of emergency management reported that it had anticipated an increase in the probability of flooding in Western and Central Texas over the July 4th Weekend. It is important to note that these areas are not a part of the most protected zones against flooding, with those areas occurring closer to the Southern coast with the Gulf of Mexico. The following day, heavy rainfall hit the area, and the local weather service issued warnings about the potential for flash floods, with water levels of creeks, rivers, and other bodies of water rising by about 5 to 7 inches. However, the thunderstorms that soon arrived dumped rain at a rate of over 3 inches per hour for the entire evening.

In the early morning hours of July 4th, a flash flood warning is issued, with the "considerable" alert tag, which indicates that the flash flood would threaten surrounding human infrastructure and life. A couple of hours later, the original warning was upgraded, and it instructed people to move immediately to high ground. Just half an hour later, as flash floods already began to occur and the rain continued to fall, the situation was declared a full emergency. By 10 am, the Kerr County Sherriff's Office had already confirmed the presence of fatalities along with the flooding. By this time, those who were still close to the water were instructed to move immediately to higher ground. Flash floods occurred up and down the Guadalupe River, including at many camps such as Camp Mystic, where children were among the victims of the intense weather.

On Sunday morning, as search and rescue operations continued, the death toll continued to mount. 59 people were confirmed dead by then, of them 21 were children. As the days went on, this death toll has risen to nearly 170 people by July 14th.

Sources

1. ABC News Network. (n.d.). ABC News. https://abcnews.go.com/US/timeline-catastrophic-flooding-texas-claims-lives-27/story?id=123500139

2. Ashley Cai, M. K. and D. W. (2025, July 8). See how close the cabins were to the river at Camp Mystic. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/07/05/us/camp-mystic-texas-flooding.html

3. Flooded areas of Texas could get several more inches of rain - The New York Times. (n.d.). https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/05/us/texas-rain-forecast.html