Crews working along a stretch of the Guadalupe River say it’s been “heartbreaking” finding vehicles and RVs deep underneath debris caused by the deadly flash floods.
INGRAM, Texas — Ingram Volunteer Fire Department held a press conference to give an update on deadly floods that washed through on Fourth of July weekend.
As of Wednesday morning, Kerr County officials said they have recovered 95 bodies so far, at least 36 of whom are children, with 161 people still unaccounted for in the floods.
Fredericksburg Fire Chief Lynn Bizzel kicked off the press conference to speak on the search and recovery efforts of crews since the floods washed through on the Fourth of July.
Bizzell said more than 300 people from several agencies have been working on an 8-mile stretch of the Guadalupe River since 2 a.m. on July 4. He added that it has been “heartbreaking” as crews have found several cars and RVs deep in the mountains of debris along the river.
The department said they are looking at “weeks or months” of recovery as crews try to clear the large amounts of debris from the river and the surrounding areas.
The flash flood is the deadliest from inland flooding in the U.S. since Colorado’s Big Thompson Canyon flood on July 31, 1976, killed 144 people, said Bob Henson, a meteorologist with Yale Climate Connections. That flood surged through a narrow canyon packed with people on a holiday weekend, Colorado’s centennial celebration.
Officials said they were not able to comment on the amount of bodies recovered in their 8-mile stretch of the river that they are working on.