Flooding at Texas Christian summer camp strikingly resembles 1987 disaster on the same river

Severe Flooding Hits Texas’ Guadalupe River Again

A devastating flood struck Texas’ Guadalupe River on Friday, affecting members of an all-girls Christian camp. This event turned out to be more destructive than the tragic flood of 1987, which claimed the lives of ten teenagers at a similar church camp.

The 1987 flood caught campers off guard as an unexpected thunderstorm, fueled by a cold front, unleashed nearly 12 inches of rain on the evening of July 16. It was a chaotic night, really.

The National Weather Service reported that riverside camps had to evacuate rapidly as the water level rose to 29 feet by the next morning.

More than 300 campers from various churches spent the night at Pot Old Ranch, as noted on a memorial plaque at the ranch’s entrance.

By around 7:45 AM on July 17, campers were loaded onto buses to leave. As the National Weather Service had predicted, water levels continued to rise, affecting areas from Ingram to Comfort, nearly a mile beyond the usual riverbanks.

As the evacuation convoy began to leave the ranch, the rising water quickly reached the camp gate, forcing the vehicles to seek a different route. Unfortunately, not every vehicle managed to escape the flood’s grasp.

The National Weather Service indicated that the last bus in the convoy, which included members from Shegoville Road Baptist Church, ended up getting stuck along with a small van trailing behind.

Church leaders tried to help the teenagers evacuate from the vehicles but were met with a formidable wall of water about half a mile wide as they attempted to get to safety.

In a desperate effort, the group formed human chains, but chaos ensued as they were quickly scattered by the force of the flood.

Tragically, one teenager lost her life in the flood, including a girl named Melanie Finley, who died while trying to escape. Reports indicate that she was involved in a rescue attempt during the chaos.

The remaining 33 children and adults managed to cling to treetops until they were rescued by the Texas Safety Bureau, military personnel, and local news teams using helicopters.

Years after this disaster, it seems not many safety measures have been improved.

At a press conference on Friday, Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly lamented the lack of a warning system, stating they had no idea that a flood was approaching.

As of now, about 23 campers from the Mystic camp have not been located since fleeing the area on Friday. Hundreds of rescue workers are searching for them and other survivors.