In a rapid turn of events, the two emergency dispatchers on duty in the Texas Hill Country found themselves inundated with frantic calls as catastrophic flooding swept through cabins and youth camps along the Guadalupe River.
Among the desperate voices were those of a firefighter clinging to a tree, witnessing his wife being swept away, a family breaking through their roof in search of rescue, and a woman trapped at an all-girls camp, surrounded by rising waters and uncertain of her escape route.
These urgent pleas formed part of over 400 calls for assistance that flooded Kerr County last summer during the unprecedented floods that struck during the July Fourth holiday weekend, as revealed by the recordings released on Friday.
“Water is rising incredibly fast, and we can’t get out of our cabin,” a camp counselor reported to a dispatcher, while screams from campers echoed in the background. “We can’t get out, so how do we reach the boats?” Remarkably, all individuals in the cabin, along with the remaining campers at Camp La Junta, were successfully rescued.
The devastating flooding claimed the lives of at least 136 individuals across the state during the holiday weekend, with a staggering 117 fatalities occurring in Kerr County alone. Victims included residents from Texas and visitors from Alabama, California, and Florida, as documented by local officials.
One distressing call came from a woman whose home near Camp Mystic—a historic summer camp for girls—was rapidly becoming submerged. “We are okay, but we live about a mile from Camp Mystic and have rescued two young girls from the river. However, I’m uncertain how many others are still out there,” she said, her voice trembling.
In the aftermath, a spokesperson for the families of the children and counselors who perished at Camp Mystic chose not to comment on the release of the recordings.
Many calls originated from individuals stranded on rooftops or in trees. Residents of the severely affected Texas Hill Country expressed their shock, stating they had received no prior warning as the floods overflowed the Guadalupe River. This has led to increased scrutiny of Kerr County officials regarding their initial response. During a summer meeting with Texas legislators, two officials admitted they were asleep during the early hours of the flooding, while a third was out of town.
Using a combination of recordings from first responders, weather service alerts, survivor videos, and official testimonies, a comprehensive timeline of the frantic rescue efforts was compiled. The media outlet involved in these efforts submitted public information requests to ensure the release of the 911 call recordings.
Numerous individuals were rescued by boats and emergency vehicles, while some desperate calls came from people being swept away in RVs. Survivors were discovered in trees and perched on rooftops.
However, some of the Friday-released calls were from individuals who did not survive. Kerrville Police Chief Chris McCall cautioned that the audio recordings are distressing. “The tree I’m in is starting to lean, and it’s about to fall. Is there a helicopter nearby?” Bradley Perry, a firefighter, calmly informed the dispatcher, adding that he had witnessed his wife, Tina, and their RV being carried away by the flood.
“I may only have about five minutes left,” he stated. Tragically, Bradley Perry did not survive, but his wife was later found alive, clinging to a tree.
In another heartrending call, a woman staying in a riverside cabin community informed a dispatcher that water was overwhelming their building. “We’re flooding, and there are people in cabins we can’t reach,” she explained. “The water is almost to the top.” Faint voices that sounded like children could be heard in the background.
Some callers made multiple attempts for help, climbing higher within their homes to communicate their increasingly desperate situations. Families reported moving from second floors to attics and, eventually, to rooftops within mere minutes, showcasing the rapid rise of the floodwaters.
As dawn broke, the volume of calls surged, with reports of survivors stuck in trees, on rooftops, or witnessing cars being swept away in the current.
Britt Eastland, the co-director of Camp Mystic, urgently requested search and rescue support and the activation of the National Guard, stating that as many as 40 individuals were unaccounted for at the camp. “We are without power and have very limited cell service,” he reported.
The 911 recordings indicate that friends and relatives outside the disaster zone, as well as those who had managed to reach safety, were calling in to seek help for loved ones trapped in the flooding.
One woman reported a friend, an elderly man, who was trapped in his home with water rising to his neck. She realized his phone had disconnected while she was trying to relay instructions from a 911 operator.
Amid the overwhelming flood of calls, dispatchers endeavored to reassure the distressed callers while also needing to move on to the next emergency. They advised many of those trapped to seek higher ground or get to their rooftops. In some instances, the sounds of children crying could be heard in the background.
“There’s water everywhere; we cannot move. We are upstairs in a room, and the water is rising,” a woman from Camp Mystic reported during her call.
She later called back, asking, “How do we reach the roof if the water is so high? Can you send someone here with the boats?” Eager for information, she inquired about when help would arrive.
“I don’t know,” the dispatcher replied. “I don’t know.”
