Texas Camp Flood Tragedy
The Guadalupe River experienced severe flash flooding on Friday, impacting the well-known summer camp region in the Texas Hill Country. Tragically, at least 24 lives were lost, including that of one of the camp’s owners.
According to reports, camp director Jane Ragsdale died at Hills camp in Hunt due to the flooding, which began with heavy rainfall around 4 a.m. that morning.
Hunt is situated approximately 50 miles northwest of San Antonio, where first responders are currently searching the river area for survivors. Ragsdale has been identified as the first confirmed victim of this disaster.
Nearby, Camp Mystic—a nearly century-old Christian summer camp for girls—hosted 750 children during this crisis. Reports indicate that safety officials began contacting families through local social media groups, informing them that their daughters were unaccounted for.
In a communication to parents, Camp Mystic reassured them that if they hadn’t received notification, their child was safe.
“This situation escalated quickly, and we didn’t see it coming,” stated Dalton Rice, mayor of Kerrville, in an interview. “The event unfolded in just a couple of hours.”
The Camp Mystic website features photos of girls involved in various activities, such as boating and horseback riding, prior to the flood.
This camp has been a cherished destination for the daughters of many prominent political figures in Texas, including the children and grandchildren of former presidents George H.W. Bush and Lyndon B. Johnson. Laura Bush, the future First Lady, was a counselor there before she married George W. Bush.
Ragsdale was described as the “heart and soul” of Heart O’The Hills camp, having started as a camper and counselor back in the 1970s. She became a co-owner in 1976 and took on the role of camp director in 1988.
In 2022, she was honored with the Speedy Altman Award, a National Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association of Camp Owners and Directors.
Whether campers from Heart O’The Hills were caught in the flood remains uncertain, as the search for the missing continues.
