# Massive flooding in Texas; 20 children missing from a summer camp **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 4, 2025, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512 "2025-07-04T21:50:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 17
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2025, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512/321 "2025-07-25T18:50:55Z")
I personally avoided being in Texas during that event, but I’ve certainly spent my share of shitty winter days in ill-prepared Dallas & other Texas places. And had many many coworkers caught in that disaster. Yeah, Ted utterly and deliberately fled that one after it was well under way. Zero debate there. I’d simply forgotten the details. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2025, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512/322 "2025-07-25T19:59:49Z")
Yeah, he left _during_ the freeze, and was caught in the airport. It’s one thing if you’re caught elsewhere when the disaster occurs, but it’s something else entirely if you actually bail _during_ the disaster. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2025, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512/323 "2025-07-25T20:09:23Z")
I doubt anything is really going to sway opinions at this point, but from my perspective, it’s part of his job. If he were some random member of the public, no, I wouldn’t have expected him to do much differently or make any public displays. Especially on a family vacation, which he probably could only afford to take once, if that, a year. As a sitting Senator who takes not just one but several holidays a year and makes a show of his ‘accomplishments’? Yes, I expect him to at least put on an act. That’s part of his job. To at least pretend to possess empathy, especially for his own constituents, not least because he clearly has no empathy for natural disaster victims in other states when urging no aid be given to them. I don’t expect everybody to agree with that, but clearly enough people do agree with that to the extent it is considered an actual issue, minor though it is. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2025, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512/324 "2025-07-25T20:40:42Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > I personally avoided being in Texas during that event, but I’ve certainly spent my share of shitty winter days in ill-prepared Dallas & other Texas places. And had many many coworkers caught in that disaster. > > Yeah, Ted utterly and deliberately fled that one after it was well under way. Zero debate there. I’d simply forgotten the details. [But he had a _reason._](https://www.texastribune.org/2021/02/18/ted-cruz-cancun-power-outage/) > “I was trying to be a dad, and all of us have made decisions — when you’ve got two girls who have been cold for two days and haven’t had heater power, and they’re saying ‘Hey, look we don’t have school why don’t we go, let’s get out of here.’ I think there are a lot of parents that would be like, ‘Look, if I can do this great.’ That’s what I wanted to do,” he told the TV station. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2025, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512/325 "2025-07-25T21:12:27Z")
I thought Cruz spent the vast majority of his time on his podcast and was hardly ever in DC either. Missed tons of votes? ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2025, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512/326 "2025-09-16T15:34:11Z")
Long article on some of the fallout from Camp Mystic. > **[“Our girls are still dead”: Camp Mystic parents pushed for laws to protect...](https://www.texastribune.org/2025/09/16/texas-camp-mystic-parents-new-laws-grief/)** > > Two dads helped lead Camp Mystic parents to advocate for new camp rules in the Texas Legislature. What they wanted most was to have their daughters back. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2025, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512/327 "2025-09-24T03:49:13Z")
> **[Camp Mystic plans to reopen in Texas next summer, a year after floods killed 27](https://apnews.com/article/camp-mystic-texas-girls-families-summer-flood-4a9b0617f46168078d067e9f888b2cdf)** > > Camp Mystic has announced that it plans to reopen one of its Texas sites, where 27 girls and counselors died in a flood. I expect it will be a lot easier to get in next year [I believe they usually had .big waiting lists]. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2025, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512/328 "2025-12-03T02:38:31Z")
> **[Camp Mystic announces enhanced safety plans after death of 25 girls, 2...](https://apnews.com/article/camp-mystic-texas-flooding-safety-plans-a996310df7435a8a63b79762b0e09f52)** > > The owners of Camp Mystic in Texas have announced new safety upgrades following a tragic July 4 flood that killed 25 campers and two counselors. What parent in their right mind would ever send a kid to this place? ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2025, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512/329 "2025-12-03T02:40:31Z")
How many camp sessions over how many decades occurred without incident? I know I don’t know, but I bet it’s a lot. It’s a fallacy to fall for recency bias or the accessibility heuristic. And especially for both. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2025, 10:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512/330 "2025-12-03T10:06:08Z")
Except there were prior incidents. Nothing as deadly, but there had been flooding events on more than one prior occasion. Those cabins were on a known flood plain. I’m certain one of the arguments being raised in court was that this was a known hazard and precautions should have been taken to better protect the people at the camp. ---
**Author:** ![Mk\_VII](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Mk\_VII](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mk_VII)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2025, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512/331 "2025-12-03T13:24:20Z")
I’m sure those very well connected parents will have been reaching out to their very expensive lawyers. ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2025, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512/332 "2025-12-03T17:34:05Z")
Regardless of how safe it is, what parents would want to deal with all the worry and comments that would come from sending their kids there? Every rainstorm would have them worried about flooding. When they tell people where they sent their kids, the first response would be be “Isn’t that the camp where dozens of kids died?” With so many camps in that area, just pick a different one that isn’t in the headlines for a terrible disaster. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2025, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512/333 "2025-12-03T17:38:27Z")
If everyone thought that way they’d already be out of business. Evidently they’re not. So not everyone is thinking that way. Is it dumber than dirt to have a camp in a real riverbed? Yes it is. But in lots of relatively flat areas, “floodplain” describes the land holding half the housing stock and most of the commercial part of the city. This is especially true in states like TX that are fundamentally opposed to the very concept of zoning and prudential regulation. It’s not obvious to me where on that spectrum this particular camp falls. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2025, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512/334 "2025-12-03T17:50:31Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > Is it dumber than dirt to have a camp in a real riverbed? Yes it is. The article that @PastTense linked suggests they are opening their “Cypress Lake” facility, which apparently was unaffected by the flood. It’s not clear if the re-opening includes areas in the flood plain, tho. I guess it is a business and they need to find a way to continue operating - considering the size of the tragedy are people expecting them to just shut down operations? Or maybe change their name? Or sell to new owners? ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2025, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512/335 "2025-12-03T18:34:53Z")
I’m surprised that they’d have any customers at all. I’d think the camp would go out of business from not having any campers. With many camps to choose from, I’d think parents would naturally pick one of the other camps that doesn’t have a terrible tragedy associated with it. Even if they spent millions on flood control and warning systems and the camp was free, I wouldn’t send my kids there for the sole reason that I don’t want to send my kids to a camp where so many kids died. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2026, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512/336 "2026-04-14T03:08:25Z")
> [@filmore](#): > > I’m surprised that they’d have any customers at all. > This week’s hearing comes during a [legal battle](https://apnews.com/article/camp-mystic-texas-floods-lawsuit-a9058c9979697bc36c6b464d5294af45) between the camp owners and victims’ families who have filed multiple lawsuits and the families’ demands to preserve the damage at the camp site as evidence. > > And it comes as Camp Mystic plans to reopen in less than two months. The camp has applied with state regulators to renew its license so that it can open an elevated area that did not flood. **Camp operators have said nearly 900 girls have registered to attend.** > **[Camp Mystic official says he didn't see flood warnings issued the day before...](https://apnews.com/article/texas-floods-camp-mystic-2ebd07c031c5cc7d5c4ac0439840ae95)** > > The director of the Texas summer camp where 27 campers and counselors were killed by a devastating flood in 2025 said he did not see early federal and state warnings sent the day before the storm hit and that staff had no meetings about the pending... ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2026, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512/337 "2026-04-14T04:06:28Z")
I was recently at another venue very close by. I can’t say what their maps looked like before the flood, but at present, their buildings nearer to the Guadalupe are marked to indicate that they have flood warning alarms. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2026, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512/338 "2026-04-27T21:57:10Z")
The Texas legislature is holding hearings about this and a good source covering the hearings is the Texas Tribune: > **[flood Archives - The Texas Tribune](https://www.texastribune.org/tag/flood/)** So you see articles like: > **[Camp Mystic counselors lacked training, Texas lawmakers told](https://www.texastribune.org/2026/04/27/texas-legislature-flood-investigating-committee-hearing-camp-mystic/)** > > Two Texas legislative committees are jointly investigating last year's deadly July 4 flood. Lawmakers previously visited Camp Mystic, where 27 girls and the director died. > **[Texas agency finds Camp Mystic emergency plan insufficient](https://www.texastribune.org/2026/04/24/texas-floods-camp-mystic-emergency-plan-deficiencies-license/)** > > The camp has 45 days to revise its plan as it aims to reopen for campers this summer. Other youth camps also had deficiencies to correct in their plans, according to the agency that must review them. > **[Camp Mystic guard: Early evacuation could have saved lives](https://www.texastribune.org/2026/04/16/camp-mystic-lawsuit-testimony/)** > > A court hearing this week has produced extensive details from camp operators of what happened in last year’s Hill Country flood. > **[Camp Mystic official testifies he didn’t see flood warnings](https://www.texastribune.org/2026/04/14/texas-camp-mystic-flood-civil-lawsuit-hearing-director-testimony/)** > > Edward Eastland, whose father died in the July 4 flood along with 27 campers and counselors, acknowledged in emotional testimony that staff should have acted sooner to evacuate campers. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2026, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512/339 "2026-04-27T22:05:01Z")
These camps are right down on the water. The crossing grades on the roadways are very close to normal water level. ---
**Author:** ![chela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chela/32/21582_2.png) [@chela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chela)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2026, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512/340 "2026-04-27T22:42:23Z")
Are they able to reopen this year? Ghastly trauma, seems too soon certainly while the case is still open per se [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512.md?page=16) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/massive-flooding-in-texas-20-children-missing-from-a-summer-camp/1020512.md?page=18)