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18 Adults, Nine Children Confirmed Dead in Texas Flash Flooding; Update on Deadly Texas Flooding That Killed At Least 27. Aired 4-5p ET
Aired July 05, 2025 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[16:00:00]
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Thank you, Ed, for bringing us his thoughts and his family's journey. We're hoping the best for him.
All right. Again, at any moment now, officials in Texas are set to hold a press conference. We'll bring that to you live as it happens.
Thank you so much for being with me today. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. The NEWSROOM continues with Erica Hill now.
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.
ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: Thank you for joining me here in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Erica Hill in New York in for Jessica Dean.
We do begin this hour with the breaking news out of Texas, where at least 27 people, including nine children, are dead following extreme flooding in that state. In the central area of Texas, a massive rescue operation is underway. More than 500 emergency workers and volunteers responding. We are also expecting any minute now a news conference and an update, of course, at that news conference.
You see the live pictures here. We're going to bring that to you as it happens. So be sure to stay with us for that. And just to bring you up to speed on where things do stand, we know among the desperate searches underway, one of those is a search for more than two dozen young girls missing after that powerful, those powerful flood waters swept through the summer camp where they were.
At least three campers from there have now been confirmed dead. 9- year-old Janie Hunt, who you see here, along with 9-year-old Lila Bonner and Sarah Marsh. The camp itself is just near the Guadalupe River. It's in the town of Hunt, Texas, near Kerrville, which is northwest of San Antonio.
The National Weather Service says the river itself swelled to its second highest level on record, rising more than 20 feet in less than two hours after the torrential rain early Friday.
CNN's Ed Lavandera is on the ground in Hunt, Texas, and has more now on the rescue efforts there.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, clearly, many people hoping to get more news and perhaps some good news in the numbers of people that are missing and that perhaps some of those people have somehow been managed to have been found alive in this debris field that stretches for miles and miles from upriver from where we are in the Camp Mystic area, where more than two dozen young camper girls have been missing since early Friday morning all the way down river as other homes and RV parks and places close to the river have been wiped out by these devastating floods.
It's been really difficult to get a sense of just overall how many people are missing, but so far the death toll stands at at least 27. That number many people expect to continue changing. But, you know, this is the scene that so many people are dealing with. You see, just beyond that tree, there is a group of men, and we've seen that over and over. People who are coming out here searching through the areas, trying to lend a hand for many people, family and friends that they've heard that either have a child missing or a loved one missing.
We came across a man from Beaumont. His name is Ty Badon. His 21-year- old daughter was here with three other friends, spending the July 4th weekend at a friend's house. They were on the phone with his daughter, one of the other friend's parents. And at 4:00 a.m., she told the parents that two of her friends had been swept away in the floodwaters. And then the phone call went dead.
Ty Badon has been out here walking up and down the Guadalupe River searching for his daughter. We found him because we heard his voice in the area that we were standing in, and we kept hearing someone call out, Joyce Catherine, Joyce Catherine. And that's when we met him.
TY BADON, SEARCHING FOR MISSING DAUGHTER AND FRIENDS: We prayed that all four of them were still alive.
LAVANDERA: All four are missing.
BADON: Yes, yes, they're all missing. And, you know, it's been 4:00 yesterday morning that we were told that, you know, they were on the phone with Aidan's dad, who -- they owned the house where they were. It's a very nice house. No longer there. And Aidan said, hey, you know, I've got to go. I've got to help Ella and Reese. So he gave the phone to Joyce Catherine, and Joyce Catherine said they just got washed away. And then a few seconds later, the phone went dead.
And that's, that's all we know. So we presume that she got washed away as well. And if you go back to where the house is, it's not a good sign. And that's why I was telling you, my son and I are walking and I thought it was a mannequin. It was a little boy about 8 or 10 years old, and he was dead. So we just --
LAVANDERA: You saw that this morning?
BADON: Yes. So we, you know, we're just walking and doing the same thing we were doing. Look, you know, when we stumbled across him, but hopefully we can find our children, our daughter and her friends, alive.
[16:05:06]
So, anyway, I ask you, if you would pray and whoever watches this thing, pray.
LAVANDERA: It's hard for Mr. Badon to hold back the emotion as he walked up and down the river. He did, he did say that the one story that has been with him as he's been out there this morning with his wife and son, searching for Joyce Catherine, is that he remembered reading a story about -- a World War II story about a school that had been bombed, and a father who spent hours combing through the rubble. All the kids had been believed inside the school had been killed.
But this father combed through the rubble for hours and hours over and over until he finally found his son alive. He says he read that story years ago, and it has stuck with him. He tells me he hopes that today he can be that father. And he described his daughter as beautiful, the best daughter a father could ask for. So you can imagine the anguish that him and his family are enduring at this moment.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HILL: And our thanks to Ed for that report. Also joining us now, Jonathan McComb. He's a volunteer with the group Texas Search and Rescue, TEXSAR. And he's been working around the clock helping residents stranded in those floodwaters.
Jonathan, you've been on the ground there in Kerrville. Can you just describe for us what you have seen over these last several hours?
JONATHAN MCCOMB, TEXSAR SEARCH AND RESCUE VOLUNTEER: You know, I mean, we've seen just more flooding. I mean the water is receding and we can we can see a little bit better where the water has gone down to try and find the -- rescue, recovery or just help out.
HILL: You know, we've been seeing the pictures, which are frankly just devastating when you see what has been left behind. I know that that too is complicating some of those rescue efforts. Being able to get to people to get to various areas. Have you encountered much of that? Has that, you know, sort of gotten in the way of the work that you're trying to do?
MCCOMB: It definitely makes it more difficult. I mean, we're trying to get in and out as quickly as we can, but some of the places we just, we just can't get into, they're washed out, bridges are gone, low water crossings are gone. So we're trying to, you know, launch some from the bank or just walk up and down the banks trying to find whatever we can find, and then we can't cross rivers without a river, without a boat. And so we're having to go around and just find different access points.
HILL: And in terms of getting that, I mean, you know, I've seen on social media requests that are going around, whether it's for motors or extra boats. I mean, how much of that is, are you able to access to help with your efforts? MCCOMB: You know, I mean, there's people coming from all over the
state and even out of state. And so we have connections kind of with everybody and everybody is here to help together. And so this isn't about one group, it's about the entire group and trying to get these victims found, recovered.
HILL: I know communications are also a challenge. I mean, we lost you a couple of times before we were able to get you up with us for this interview. How much has that impacted your efforts as well, those communication issues?
MCCOMB: You know, quite a bit. I mean, we have pretty good comms that even if the cell towers are down are still working. And so it does hinder things when were on the river and we don't have cell phone service. So it's problematic but not unbeatable.
HILL: Yes, I know this is in many ways you come to this work from a heart-wrenching and very personal place. You survived a flood 10 years ago that took the lives of your wife and your children. As you're out there helping people in this moment, how does your personal experience guide you?
MCCOMB: You know, it's tough. It was a tough drive in here yesterday. And then all last night. And, you know, there's time to cry. And that's at home. And times to work hard. And that's what we're doing now. Texas is a beautiful state with beautiful people. And right now there's a -- you know, the light is not real bright, but the people coming together here is bright. And we're helping each other and working together to get whatever we can accomplish to bring some closure to these families and just to give them, you know, a peace of mind.
I know that, when I went through that, that I, you know, unfortunately did not have a recovery of my daughter. And so I know what that means to not be able to have that closure. And so we're doing everything we can to get that for some other folks. But, you know, we're here together. Good Lord is watching over us and trying to keep us safe. And that's what we're asking everybody to do is just to pray and come together.
And it's unfortunate that it takes tragedies like this to bring people together, but it does. And we've got to be thankful for that.
[16:10:02]
HILL: Yes, it is absolutely unfortunate that it is in times of tragedy. But to your point, the coming together of a community and the way people show up for one another in these moments, that does offer its own special bit of light in a moment of darkness.
Jonathan, really appreciate you taking the time to join us and the work that you're doing there. Thank you.
MCCOMB: Thank you.
HILL: President Trump is pledging federal support for the people in Texas hit by this deadly flooding. We'll have more on what he's saying up next, right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HILL: And thanks for joining us. I want to take you straight to this press conference happening in Texas now with Governor Abbott as we get an update. Let's listen in.
GOV. GREG ABBOTT (R), TEXAS: What I have observed in this community over the past 24 hours is what I call quintessential Texas.
[16:15:05]
When Texans face a challenge, we come together, we unite. And that's exactly what's happened over the past 24 to 48 hours in this community. Nothing more than extraordinary devastation and the worst thing that could happen to this community fell upon it. They could have fallen apart. They could have fought against each other, but instead they understand the importance of unity.
And it's what Texans do. It's what we will continue to do. Along those lines, something else to double down on what I said last night. We will be relentless in going after and ensuring that we locate every single person who has been a victim of this flooding event. We're not going to stop today or tomorrow. We will stop when the job is completed. Between now and whenever that day arrives, when we -- when the job is completed.
This is a 24-seven operation day and night because we know that we are looking for Texans and Americans, and we put them as our top priority. We will find every one of them. Additionally, I want to let you know that overnight there was an increase in storm damage and rainfall and flooding in other regions of the state of Texas that were in addition to the ones that were in the disaster declaration that I made yesterday.
What I'm going to sign today is an expanded disaster declaration that adds the following counties to what I signed yesterday. This disaster declaration includes Bexar County, Burnet, Caldwell, Guadalupe, Travis and Williamson Counties.
We will continue to add counties as needed as conditions either worsen or improve in counties across the state of Texas, we will ensure that every asset and resource the state has is going to be made available to every county that's the subject of this disaster declaration. Also, I've had the opportunity to visit not just with Secretary Noem, but other officials in the Trump administration, and we know that President Trump, he loves Texas, for one. He's deeply concerned about all the families who've been affected, but also knows about the magnitude of the devastation that we're suffering.
And so what I'm about to sign now is going to be the first step in a process. This document is a request for a federal disaster declaration coming from the governor to seek the immediate and ongoing help of the federal government.
I want to express my gratitude in advance to President Trump for his entire administration, for their devotion to the state of Texas. He always tells me about his love for the people of the state of Texas, his deep concern for them. And I know that he's feeling that now as much as he ever has. And there's no better way to show that than the fact that he wanted to ensure that he and his entire administration was represented here today by Secretary Kristi Noem, to whom I would like to turn things over at this time.
KRISTI NOEM, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: Thank you. Thank you, everyone, for being here today. And I want to thank Governor Abbott for his leadership and know that President Trump is absolutely heartbroken by what has happened here in Texas and the loss of life is absolutely devastating to him and Melania.
This morning I talked with him several times, and he wanted to make sure that all of you know how much he loves Texas, how much he's grieving for your families that have lost someone, and the beautiful children that we're still looking for and hoping to return to their families, and that he is absolutely committed to using all the resources of the federal government to help unify families, rescue all those that were still missing, and return those who maybe we will recover back to their families as soon as possible.
And that we will be here walking alongside each other and helping throughout this entire crisis. And know that I'm extremely grateful as well for the leadership of Nim Kidd, who is a fantastic emergency operations manager, and has been well-known throughout this country for leading through such a time as this.
[16:20:09]
And this tragic situation is something that is unprecedented. We recognize that at the federal level. We also recognize that when something like this happens to a community, happens to a state, that the best responders are those locally because it's your family members, it's your community members that are being impacted. And you can respond quickly. And the role of the state is to run and manage that emergency.
But the federal government needs to be here for the support and extra resources on the ground as well. And that is what we are doing and what President Trump has dedicated to continue to do. I've visited with the president already about this Federal Disaster Declaration that the governor was going to sign here this morning, and he has indicated that he will honor that and that he will accept that.
So that response and that relief will be coming. And we also have had assets here on the ground since the beginning of this crisis started since this weather event did start, and even before it came, we were alerted. We did have Coast Guard assets here that were helping to rescue people. We're thankful for that airframe that showed up in those Coasties that were here walking alongside our DPS and the emergency responders that were here.
The Texas assets that were deployed already, and that coordination was seamless. And I appreciate them for putting that request in right away. We also had our BORTAC team from Customs and Border Protection out here helping with rescues. They are specialized, trained, forced to come in in these types of situations and bring their skillset to bear. That is a resource that's incredibly important to the Department of Homeland Security, but also in these types of situations when we need emergency management response.
We also did have a CBP advisory interdiction specialist here that was helping with some coordination of air assets that has been present. And then we are looking at the other entities that are under the department, what can be utilized. And of course, FEMA is standing at an enhanced level right now, which means that they are plugged in to the state operations center. We are engaged.
And then as this response goes forward, that their role will continue to be filled, as it always is in these situations and will be timely and responsive as to what the governor requests and what is needed here on the ground. I do know that the state of Texas is amazing in how it responds to disasters. Not every state is like that. Many states do not do what the people of Texas do, and you are an example to the nation of getting through these difficult times.
But also know that you're not alone, that you have the entire country's hearts and are with you and are walking alongside you. And at the department, we will continue to bring more resources. We just, at the request of a previous conversation less than an hour ago, in visiting with him and with the governor, requested more fixed wing aircraft from Coast Guard to come and help us, making sure that we're going out and locating individuals as fast as possible that we know are still missing, and that we also will send more airframe as far as helicopters that have the ability to come in, and some will be equipped, and the fixed wings with thermal so they can continue to work all night long.
Some of the assets that other agencies may offer don't have that kind of equipment, but the Coast Guard does have it. And so that will be deployed so that the search and rescue efforts don't stop even when it does get dark at night.
We'll continue to stay engaged and I'll be here. I'm going to go up to the Camp Mystic, and I'm going to go around town and spend some time here today and make sure that when I am calling and talking to the president throughout the day, that he has timely information with the requests that are coming here from the leadership on the ground are met immediately and that we can take care of these families and take care of these folks right away.
We do know the number one priority now is people, is making sure we're finding people as fast as possible and we're returning them to their families. And then also, you know, throughout the process, we'll get into what damage was done to public infrastructure, what may have been done to -- I know we have 1800 people that are still without power and understand -- what I understand is people still have water, but we do have damage to bridges and to roads.
Thankfully, dams held, but all of that is an assessment that we'll continue to work with you on to make sure that you recover as quickly as possible. So again, thank you all for being strong and being an example for people. Someone told me a long time ago, over 30 years ago, that to never get angry on behalf of yourself, get angry on behalf of the other people, to always go out and get up every day and go work for other people and help them. And so I know many of you that are out there responding and helping your neighbors had losses, too.
[16:25:04]
You're hurting because you're grieving somebody that may have been lost. We were created to serve people. God created us to serve each other, and now is a wonderful time to go find somebody you can help, somebody that you can take care of and get them through this process. And that will make us stronger and better into the future. So our prayers are with you.
President Trump wants you to know that he and Melania are praying for you and love you. And with that, I'll turn it back over to the governor.
ABBOTT: Sure. Well, thank you very much. Thank you so much for being here. Thank you for the assets and resources you and the Trump administration are providing. One thing that Secretary Noem mentioned was the fact that recoveries and rescues are being made, and what has happened over the past 36 hours is really amazing.
When you look at what the local officials have done, working in collaboration with multiple state agencies as well as our federal partners, in 36 hours, they have rescued or recovered more than 850 people, some clinging to trees to save their lives, others in other precarious situation. It's just sheer heroism, the way that we've seen our first responders rescue so many people.
And now I would like to turn things over to Senator John Cornyn.
SEN. JOHN CORNYN (R-TX): My thanks to President Trump and Secretary Noem for responding so quickly to Governor Abbott's request for a federal disaster declaration. And particularly, Madam Secretary, thank you for being here in person. It's really important and I think sends a very important message.
Unfortunately, I've been to a number of disasters over the years across the state of Texas, as has the governor. And none of these get any easier. But I have to tell you, I remain incredibly impressed with Governor Abbott's leadership and the incredible work that the Texas Department of Emergency Management, under the leadership of Nim Kidd, do. They are literally the best in the nation.
And what Secretary Noem said about other states not responding as well is true. It's something we should be very proud of and grateful for, particularly at a time like this. And then there are the men and women who are standing behind us here, who have been doing the work on the ground, not waiting for the federal government to show up. They've been getting the work done as the governor pointed out, and we are all together.
We are praying for those who have lost loved ones and are grieving. We are celebrating with those who have been reacquainted with and rejoined with their family members. And, you know, a few years ago, the governor will remember this up in West Texas after a terrible disaster, a county commissioner there said something to me that I think is appropriate at a time like this. He said, being from Texas is not just about where you're from. It's who your family is.
And so when things like this happen, we come together as a family, as Texans, in a way that I'm very proud of. But it's very important because this is who our family is and we owe it to them. And I take the governor at his word that that he and his team will be relentless in supporting all of the efforts at the local and the federal level until every lost -- last person is accounted for. And those families are reunited with their loved ones.
But, Governor, thank you again for your leadership. Secretary Noem. It means a lot to us for you to be here. And we appreciate governor, Governor Abbott and Chief Kidd, but we appreciate President Trump and you responding so quickly to the governor's request for disaster declaration.
Thank you very much.
ABBOTT: Thank you. And now, Congressman Chip Roy.
REP. CHIP ROY (R-TX): Thank you, Governor. Thanks to all of you for being here. You know, before I was crazy enough to run for Congress, my family and I started a tradition of coming down to Kerrville for Fourth of July. And we've been coming here every summer since my kids were little. They're now 14 and 15. See Robert Earl and whoever else was playing, and pictures have been popping up my phone.
The ones that, you know, kick on the anniversary of different shows, a bunch of different shows over the last decade. It hits home. It really does. It hits personally, for those of us for whom this is our community, our home. We -- my family lives in Hays County, but we spend a lot of time in Kerr. And I can't say enough about the local leadership and what they've been doing in the face of this disaster. Your city manager has done an extraordinary job.
[14:30:00]
Your sheriff has done an extraordinary job. I could go down the list of everybody and I'll leave somebody out, but I can't say enough about what they've done. And then I can't say enough about the governor and about nim, and about the leadership that has come from the state and from DPS and from TDEM to get this done and to do what were in the process of still doing, to react to this -- to this unfortunate circumstance. It's been professional and it's been extremely well done.
And I have to say, the secretary yesterday I reached -- I reached out to her office. I think it might be 15 minutes later that I got a call from the secretary immediately responding to requests. I talked to NIM about the need for army corps support and some other stuff. Immediately talked to secretary about it. The collaboration, the teamwork, local, state and federal. I cannot overstate the extent to which everybody set aside turfs or any of those kinds of things to deliver for the people of Texas.
Now, were far from having finished the job. We're all here knowing that we still have work to do. We're still prayerful. We're still hopeful. Obviously, there's a lot here that were dealing with, but I'm deeply appreciative for that. that coordination.
And last point that I'll just make is, you know, and I've said this a little bit earlier this morning, there's going to be a lot of finger pointing and a lot of second guessing and Monday morning quarterbacking. And I just want to pick up on what I think the governor said about 800 and, you know, 50 something individuals that were moved quickly in this circumstance, and in a once in a century flood where you get 12, 14 inches, where you get a 26 to 30 foot increase in water in the course of an hour and a half, at 4:00 to 6:00 in the morning on a holiday. And that that's what were dealing with in these circumstances where those camps are.
Theres a lot of people saying why and how, and I understand that, and I understand why parents should be asking those questions and all of the media. But where we are right now in terms of what we've done to be able to protect people, move them, get them out of the camps, and the heroic efforts of people that worked in those camps, directors of the camps, people who own the camps, who not just risk their lives, gave their lives to try to save the lives of those kids. That's who they are as Texans, and I'm so proud of that.
And I'm so proud of the work that everyone has done to do that. And now, we just got to finish the job and be with the people and importantly, pray for the families who have lost their loved ones.
GOV. GREG ABBOTT (R-TX): Thank you. Now, Kerr County Judge Kelly.
ROB KELLY, JUDGE, KERR COUNTY: Yes. I think I'm the only one at this table that lives on the Guadalupe River, and our properties were devastated, and I barely got home yesterday. I started my morning ushering in a crew with the skid steer and two dump trailers, three trucks, nine men to start trying to rebuild what went down the river. I then had the opportunity to come here, where I was asked to go over to the funeral home. I had issues over there.
I am a 50 year lawyer and a mediator and arbitrator, and we had some issues that needed attention, and I got to see firsthand many of the body bags, and it breaks my heart. And coming back from that, we had an opportunity to go on a helicopter ride with the senator and the mayor and inspect the devastation. We flew all the way up to Southfork, all the way to (INAUDIBLE). And you can see what's happened, and it's going to be a long time before were ever going to be able to clean it up, much less rebuild it.
But there's nothing on the other side of (INAUDIBLE). It's just hill country, and we didn't know. We know we get rains. We know the river rises, but nobody saw this coming. And what I'd really have to report to you is it was a Godsend to be able to get out of the helicopter, walk back into this building and sit down with these people and cooperate arm in arm, hand in hand, to do the best we can to work the process.
The rescue has gone as well as can be expected. It's getting time now for the recovery, and that's going to be a long toilsome task for us. And what I would reiterate that I've heard others say is as long as we stay together, well get this done. Thank you.
[16:35:07]
ABBOTT: Thank you very much. and now, Mayor Herring.
JOE HERRING JR., KERRVILLE, TEXAS: I want to start off by saying thank you. On behalf of the city of Kerrville and our 25,000 citizens, I want to say thank you to the federal government, the state government, county government. You know, as I look around the room and the emergency operations center, I don't see different agencies from the state, the federal, the county. I see one team working together. It's important for our community to know it's one team. We will rescue those in peril, and we will find those who are lost.
I continue to ask everyone who sees this day to pray for Kerrville and Kerr County. We need your prayers. And thank God we have the help of the federal government and the state government in this horrible, horrible crisis. Thank God for our country and thank God for all the help. We are receiving today. Thank you.
ABBOTT: Now. TDM chief Nim Kidd.
NIM KIDD, CHIEF, TEXAS DIVISION OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT: Thank you governor. My heart breaks. It's broken for those families that have lost their loved ones. And that fuels our drive to continue to search for them. And we will not stop until we find every one of them. I have to stop by -- start by thanking our local first responders. Those men and women on the streets live here. they work here, their families are here, yet they got on the truck and they got in the car and they got in the ambulance, and they went out and they did everything they could to save their neighbors.
You also have volunteers all over this county that do the job for free, that were out there working to save lives many times, putting their own lives and their property at risk. Our state partners have been phenomenal. Nothing short. Madam Secretary, your federal team has been nothing short of remarkable and impressive. I'm grateful for that. Every time I've reached out to you or your staff or Acting Administrator Richardson, or the Acting Regional Administrator, I don't think the phone has rang twice before you've answered. Thank you for doing that. thank you for being here with us.
Life safety continues to be our number one priority. We will continue the search until all those that are missing are found. We will start cleanup and property damage assessments as soon as possible. Our teams from FEMA have been in the State Emergency Operations Center since before we started operating on this event. They are exactly where we need them to be, doing exactly what we need them to be doing. Our Border Patrol partners have been here, and I'm so grateful for the U.S. Coast Guard. Acting Administrator Richardson and Regional Administrator Stolar have been great partners to us. We continue to work forward.
And if I may, I'd just like to run across a few more of the numbers. 1331 state additional personnel that have been added to this response on top of all your local responders, over 906 state assets here. That's 125 from our agency, 172 from the Urban Search and Rescue Team at Texas Task Force One. Over 160 from the Department of Public Safety, over 250 from the Texas Department Of Transportation, 170 from the Texas Wildlife Department. Military Department 136, and the A&M Forest Service here with 115, and almost 190 people on the health and medical side.
Governor, our team stands ready to assist this community.
ABBOTT: Thank you very much.
One last thing. And that is there is a word that's been the most common word that's been spoken over the past 36 hours, and that is the word prayer. It's been repeated by the people who are watching this as we speak right now, as repeated often on social media, through phone calls, through texts, and those prayers are answered in so many ways, answered by that child who was being swept down the river and happened to find a tree to cling on and was able to continue with uncommon strength to be able to remain clinging to that tree until a helicopter was able to descend upon her and lift her out of that harrowing situation.
It could have been the reason why water stopped rising into a home or a cabin or something that would have caused an entire building to float away. It could be the reason why there have been so many people have been located wherever they were down the river basin. It could be something that prevented somebody from getting into the water to begin with.
All we know is that prayer does work. Your prayers have made a difference. We ask for continued prayers as we continue our efforts to locate everybody who's been affected by this. And pray so much for the families who have lost a loved one, who are going through challenging times that they never imagined on the 3rd of July that something like this would happen. Prayer matters. And we thank God almighty. God has blessed Texas and will continue to bless our great state.
Well take a few questions.
[16:40:29]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The numbers changed. 27 dead and 27 missing from Camp Mystic.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sure. What I can tell you is there's still 27 missing. We have recovered some additional bodies at this time. We're trying to identify at this time. What I can tell you an update, there's 32 deceased, 18 of those are adults and 14 are children. Five of the adults remain unidentified and three children remain unidentified. We are still working on that at this time. As I said earlier this morning, the numbers are going to continue to change. They're going to continue to change. Still, were done. It's been a very good day as far as being out there and being able to do some things, and we've got a lot done.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Chief, early on, there was a lot of conflicting information about the search, about the number of fatalities, the missing, even a lot of families and parents were rightfully concerned, and more importantly, confused about all this information.
You just heard the judge referred to this as a shift from rescue to recovery. Can you clarify what that means? Are we talking about these missing people no longer believed to be alive?
KIDD: You'll need the judge to answer that piece. Our state assets and local partners are continuing to search for live victims.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is there any indication that there is still a -- that there are still people out there alive? Any evidence?
KIDD: History would tell us that after a certain time period, those chances diminish. And we can talk about all of the numbers in the metrics on that. Our hope and prayer is that there are still people alive that are out there, and we are still actively searching for them, and we will continue. And listen, that will turn into recovery at some point. And none of us want to put a time period on that right now. But when you talk to the men and women that are up there in those helicopters and out in those boats and walking the ground, they're looking for live people right now and doing everything they can to continue the search as fast as possible.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And Judge, just a moment to clarify, because we want to be very clear with especially families and parents that are watching this, what makes you feel like this has gone from rescue to potential recovery? Because there is a difference.
KELLY: We will eventually get to the recovery.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Two more questions.
(CROSSTALK)
ABBOTT: Well, were going to do more than two more questions. I want to say this. My instruction to every state agency involved in this is to assume everybody who is missing is alive, and there's a need for speed. Not just every hour, every minute counts, which is why there's people in the area, people in the water, people on the ground right now because they're looking to save every last life. And we will not give up that effort.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Two more questions.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I live in Kerrville. Why was the -- why was the National Weather Service not pinging their phones before 7:00 this day of Fourth of July. I need a federal people who can answer that maybe for us. I got updates at 7:00. First I heard, and I've heard updates throughout the week, but not before 7:00 in the morning. Wasn't that a fundamental failure of the federal governments responsibility to keep us safe?
KRISTI NOEM, SECRETARY, HHS: Well, you know, my background is before I was in the secretary position here under the Trump Administration, I was governor of South Dakota and served in congress for eight years before I was governor. And so, I will tell you that for decades, for years, everybody knows that the weather is extremely difficult to predict, but also that the National Weather Service, over the years at times has done well. And at times we have all wanted more time and more warning and more alerts and more notification.
That is something, and one of the reasons that when president trump took office that he said he wanted to fix and is currently upgrading the technology. And the National Weather Service has indicated that with that and NOAA, that we needed to renew this ancient system that has been left in place with the federal government for many, many years. And that is the reforms that are ongoing there.
The timeline that I have -- I don't oversee the National Weather Service. That's not under my department, but the timeline that I did receive from them was that the notifications started to look at it's expansion for it's limited flood impacts area that started on July 3rd at 1:18 p.m. a flood watch was issued. Although it was moderate, it wasn't to the extremes that it was that when the system came over the area that it stalled. It was much more water, much like I think we experienced during Harvey. The same type of system that was unpredictable in the way that it reacted and the way that it stopped right here and dumped unprecedented amounts of rain that caused a flooding event like this.
[16:45:00]
They continued to elevate and up their notifications. You know, when your notification hit your phone, sir, I'm sorry I can't speak to when that is. But I do care your concerns back to the federal government, to President Trump. And we will do all we can to fix those kinds of things that may have felt like a failure to you and to your community members. But we know that everybody wants more warning time, and that's why we're working to upgrade the technologies that have been neglected by far too long to make sure that families have as much advance notice as possible. But --
ABBOTT: One more question, folks.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Can you please speak to the search efforts and where that's happening and what the challenges are?
KIDD: The question was search efforts.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Where it's happening, challenges? What it's looking like?
KIDD: Yes. The entire river is being searched from the northernmost impact all the way as we run down. You have assets in the air that are still doing searches. You have boats that are in the water doing searches, and you have ground crews doing searches. As the water recedes, new areas being uncovered and searched. And you have human and canine that are working those banks and will continue. That's a -- it's a grid situation where we've got maps in there in the EOC where you can see what's -- what group is assigned to what area and reporting back to command if they find or if they continue to clear. And that process is going to keep going. We are not stopping until we find everyone that's missing.
ABBOTT: Thank you, everyone. That's all we've got time for.
KIDD: Go ahead.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As far as the resources for people to respond to recover, we have e-mail, we have the state. What can people depend on from the federal government and the state government in this time of needing a lockdown?
NOEM: Well, as in every emergency situation, the local emergency responders put together what the request is through the state and the state coordinates all of the response and what assets may be necessary, and makes a request to us. So, now that the governor has already requested this federal disaster declaration, they will start to tell us what the needs are and the federal government will do all that we can to support.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ma'am, will there be direct assistance --
NOEM: Well, there already has been direct assistance. I mean, when you look at having Coast Guard assets here on the ground, we just requested more assets to be here. Border patrol here. If there's more individuals and federal law enforcement officers, if we need, you know, any assets that I may have under my purview, I've made available to him. And so, he knows that if he needs something, it'll be here great.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Appreciate it. Thank you. Folks.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: So, if you're just joining us, that was the latest update there from officials in Texas. Federal and state officials. Just some of the headlines coming out of this. Governor Abbott noting that he had added six additional counties to his disaster declaration. That brings the total, by my count, to 20 Texas counties now that are a part of that disaster declaration.
Also noted that he was putting in that federal disaster declaration request with the federal government, which, of course, Secretary Noem there as well, noting that it had been received that the federal government would be doing everything they could to help and to assist, and that she had been in regular contact with President Trump. I would say, in terms of the other headlines here, let's get you up-to-date on what we know about the people on the ground. The update still 27 people missing, we are told. There have, however, been additional bodies recovered. A total of 32 have now been declared dead. Among those 32 people who lost their lives, we know 14 are children. We also learned that five of those 32 are adults who have not been identified. Three of them are children who remain unidentified.
There was also a moment of confusion, frankly, that a reporter tried to clarify. We did not get an exact answer to this question, but the county judge had said that things were basically shifting, and I'm just looking at my notes here. He had said that the rescues had gone as well as could be expected, but it was getting to be time now for the recovery. And he noted that would be long. There was a question about whether this actually had switched to a recovery operation, as opposed to a rescue operation, because that, of course, would indicate that there was little hope that those who are missing are still alive.
We did not get an answer as to why the county judge used that specific language. Governor Abbott, however, did jump in to say that he believed at this point everyone should be considered as still being alive, and that's the way they're going to approach this. There were also some questions about a lack of notifications from the National Weather Service. Secretary Noem noting that she doesn't oversee this, but that there are -- they are working on some technology upgrades. She said there had been some issues in her estimation with the system for some time, from both the National Weather Service and NOAA, and said she'd carry those concerns back to the federal government.
I want to bring in now Juliette Kayyem, CNN Senior National Security Analyst. Juliette, as we look at where things stand, first of all, in this moment, there were not a ton of specifics I will note in that press conference in terms of what may have changed over the last several hours or even updating what the search is like. This is understandably a very difficult situation --
JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Yes.
HILL: Because of the how quickly it happened, because of the amount of destruction. We know bridges, roads destroyed. It is difficult to get into these areas waiting for the water to recede. When you go through the information that we do have, what does it tell you about where things stand in this moment?
[16:50:14]
KAYYEM: Yes. OK. I think viewers -- there are -- there are sort of three main things coming out of that press conference. I've been through this enough times. So, the first was -- I mean, people did get to hear Nim Kidd. He's the very professional head of Texas Emergency Management, former firefighter, really give the details of what the response looks like in terms of the assets, in terms of where they are focused. That's important. He also later on, I think, you know, is preparing us and preparing the community that response is going to have to turn to recovery. The science is the science, as he said. And at some stage, we just know that people cannot survive in these conditions.
The second piece out of that press conference was an interesting sort of dynamic between the state and the federal government, in which this -- the governor signs the emergency declaration in front of the secretary of Homeland Security. I'm only bringing this up because, of course, we all know that Donald Trump has been warning he's going to get rid of FEMA and also sort of push a lot to the states. So, there was an interesting dynamic between a Republican state and the White House in terms of some of the politics that have come to play in disaster declaration under this administration. Most of the time, you wouldn't see this interplay.
The third is, of course, the questions. This is very difficult and this is horrifying. I have been around a long time with you. This one hurts. To ask questions about what happened is we owe it to those girls.
HILL: Yes.
KAYYEM: I mean, honestly, I don't -- you know. And so, there's two big questions that are going to have to be answered. The first is -- and it appears, was there a gap between what the National Weather Service was doing and alerting, and what the locals were notifying their community. So, that's one question.
Some I've been looking at the time -- the TikTok, three or four hours. There may have been a delay. That's going to -- that is a long time. I know flash floods are scary and they are fast, but we have flash flood warnings for a reason. They're not totally unpredictable. This one's horrible. So, we have to learn from that.
The second is, of course, the question of what Donald Trump and the DOGE effort have done to National Weather Service and NOAA are those cuts, including cuts -- that I just monitored some of the cuts out of Texas, including some of the top people at NOAA and National Weather Service in Texas, including some of the alert people. Did -- were those cuts mean that the team in place now maybe doesn't have the experience, or there's not enough of them? Those are also important questions to ask, because the changes to weather alert services for those of us in disaster management are very worrying because you want to give people time. And so, I do think I -- you know, the administration -- Secretary Noem said she would take it -- take it back to the White House. But that's why you're hearing reporters push on this --
HILL: Yes.
KAYYEM: Because if those -- yes, if those changes are real at National Weather Service, NOAA and they impacted the alert system, we ought to refill those positions. I personally don't know what technological upgrades Secretary Noem was talking about. I follow this and I just haven't heard of them.
The other is, of course, where the Texas locals to delayed in warning. And I want to be clear here. A flash flood like this, there are going to be fatalities. No one pretends otherwise. The question is what can we learn from it?
HILL: Right. And --
KAYYEM: And I Think you saw that frustration in the parents. Yes. HILL: Absolutely. And to your point, Juliette, I would -- I would say two things. Just picking up on on what you're saying. Number one, there was notably a very small time for questions.
KAYYEM: Yes.
HILL: And before those questions started, we were told now is not the time to ask what went wrong and why people didn't know.
KAYYEM: Yes.
HILL: The reality is, multiple things can be true at once. You can be actively involved in rescue missions. You can look at what is happening on the ground. You can mourn those lives that were lost. And you can also ask those questions because we know we live in a time where storms are stronger --
KAYYEM: Yes.
HILL: -- where rains are stronger, where there will be more events like this. So, to your point, it's important to ask those questions in the moment.
KAYYEM: Yes. And people -- you know, people will say that that's political or whatever. But actually, you're hearing it from the parents, you're hearing it from the community. And you know -- and you heard about faith. And faith driving this community through.
But part of what faith is, is also recognizing that that danger will come again. And we owe it to future generations to do better in terms of either the alerts by the locals or, of course, changes to the federal government disaster system. I am -- I am -- being honest here, I am -- I'm looking at the data. I cannot answer the question yet.
[16:55:11]
Were cuts directly responsible? I know what's happened to the Texas National Weather Service and NOAA. I know what weather -- and weather reporters and locals there are saying.
HILL: Yes.
KAYYEM: And also, we don't know what the time frame is in terms of did National Weather Service -- you know, consistently, I saw the alerts.
HILL: Sure.
KAYYEM: They were consistently getting more panicked, obviously. Did -- was there just too much of a delay? There -- those girls -- you know, obviously the campsites is what were focused on. But there are other areas. There may have been not enough time regardless, but I don't think we should pretend that we have nothing to learn.
HILL: Right. Yes.
KAYYEM: Because -- HILL: Again, we can -- we can follow multiple threads.
KAYYEM: Yes.
HILL: Yes. And Texas has been here before on this --
KAYYEM: Thank you. Yes.
HILL: Very sadly. And a number of other areas of the country. And so, to learn from it is important. Juliette, thank you as always. We'll continue to check in with you, of course.
And we are going to continue to follow the breaking news out of Texas. We're going to fit in a quick break here. Stay with us. We're right back at the top of the hour.
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