The search for those missing in catastrophic Texas floods resumes in some areas after pause for rain

KERRVILLE Texas AP For a second straight day rain forecasts hampered the search Monday for people still missing after deadly floods pummeled Texas as executives made plans to drain reservoirs in the search for casualties and lowered the number of people they noted remain missing While certain official crews resumed the search along the Guadalupe River in and around Kerrville in Kerr County others held off or were ordered to stop because of worries about the forecast and the possibility of more flooding And local bureaucrats who have faced mounting scrutiny over a perceived lack of action and warnings ahead of the July Fourth storm that killed at least people complained they have received threats to their safety The first pause in search efforts due to the weather came Sunday in Texas Hill Country where the soil is still primed for enhanced water runoff The number of missing At a news conference Monday state bureaucrats noted people remain missing including in the Kerrville area The other four were swept away in neighboring counties That is a key drop from the more than people representatives had previously revealed were unaccounted for in Kerr County alone with more missing in neighboring areas State authorities did not promptly respond to emailed requests for clarity on the big change in the number of missing Texas Gov Greg Abbott suggested it has been challenging to pin down a number Campers residents or people who registered at RV parks or hotels are easier to account for he explained Others may have been communicated missing by a friend family member or coworker Even though we are reporting people missing there is no certainty that all of those people were swept away by the storm Abbott reported Trailer after trailer after trailer swept away Texas Hill Country is a popular destination for tourists where campers seek out spots along the river amid the rolling hills Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly announced during a commissioners meeting Monday that it s been tough to determine exactly how several tourists were in the area when the flooding occurred We ve heard accounts of trailer after trailer after trailer being swept into the river with families in the them Can t find the trailers Kelly disclosed It s what we don t know We don t know how multiple of them there are Kelly stated he d been narrated of one trailer that was discovered absolutely covered in gravel feet meters below the surface of the river He declared sonar crews have been searching the river and local lakes and more are expected to arrive Commissioner Don Harris noted bureaucrats plan to drain two reservoir lakes on the river Who knows how a multitude of out there are comprehensively covered Harris revealed The search The Federal Urgency Management Agency s Urban Search and Rescue teams fully resumed operations on Monday disclosed Obed Frometa FEMA Blue Circumstance Backing Club information officer Levi Bizzell a spokesperson for the Ingram Volunteer Fire Department which has been organizing about searchers reported the department suspended operations for the day on Monday because several inches of rain were expected to fall on Kerr County by late afternoon Everybody here wants to be out there working Bizzell commented They literally come in in the morning whether they are tired or not and they just want to get out there and work because they want to find closure for these families Kerr County meanwhile advised all contributors to leave the river area and move to higher ground saying only those teams working under the direction of Kerr County Exigency Operations Center Unified Command were permitted in the response zone Playing a blame tournament In Kerrville about miles kilometers west of Austin local officers have come under scrutiny over whether residents were adequately warned about the rising water on July Personnel in Kerrville went door-to-door to specific homes early Sunday warning that flooding was again manageable and pushed phone alerts to area residents Kerr County commissioners requested the inhabitants for their patience as the search and cleanup continues Commissioner Rich Paces noted during a meeting Monday morning that he has received death threats They re just playing a blame competition Paces declared During a special Kerrville City Council meeting council member Brenda Hughes also complained of threats to city leaders and staff which she did not detail and called for increased guard at City Hall The July Fourth flood Just before daybreak on the Fourth of July destructive fast-moving waters rose feet meters on the Guadalupe River washing away homes and vehicles Crews in helicopters boats and drones have been searching for casualties The floods laid waste to the Hill Country region The riverbanks and hills of Kerr County are filled with vacation cabins youth camps and campgrounds including Camp Mystic the century-old all-girls Christian summer camp Located in a low-lying area along the Guadalupe River in a region known as flash flood alley Camp Mystic lost at least campers and counselors The flood was far more severe than the -year event envisioned by the Federal Urgency Management Agency experts reported and moved so briskly in the middle of the night that it caught a great number of off guard in a county that lacked a warning system More rain Areas that were hit by the July Fourth floods were forecast to get more rain Monday The Guadalupe River near Hunt Texas where Camp Mystic is located had risen to almost feet meters by Monday afternoon resulting in minor flooding The river was expected to rise another feet meters by Monday evening causing moderate flooding according to the National Weather Provision s Austin San Antonio office The weather organization had not received any reports of flooding of homes or roads as of Monday afternoon A series of thunderstorms that inundated areas west of Kerr County weakened as they passed through the area and there wasn t much rain by late Monday afternoon according to the weather facility From Sunday night and Monday morning southwestern Kerr County received up to inches centimeters of rain The Hunt area received about inches centimeters Swift water rescue teams have already been sent to Uvalde Del Rio and Concan in anticipation of attainable flooding in those communities on the Frio River Nim Kidd Texas urgency operations chief noted during the Monday news conference Vertuno and Lathan contributed to this description from Austin Associated Press reporters Sophia Tareen in Chicago Carolyn Thompson in Buffalo New York Juan A Lozano in Houston Michael Weissenstein in Dobbs Ferry New York and Jeff Martin in Kennesaw Georgia also contributed to this record Source