US EditionTexas Flood Survivors Speak Out
KERR COUNTY, TEXAS, AUG 1 – Lawmakers consider new safety laws after deadly floods killed over 130 people, focusing on improving warnings, evacuation plans, and emergency response in flood-prone areas.
- Survivors of the deadly July 4 Texas Hill Country floods, which killed over 130 people, testified for more than 13 hours at a Kerr County legislative hearing last month.
- The floods overwhelmed the area rapidly, and officials faced heavy criticism for failed warning systems and key local leaders being asleep as waters rose.
- Survivors described urgent needs for supplies like diapers and formula, while volunteers and officials agreed many communities outside Kerrville received less aid and attention.
- Mike Richards criticized FEMA's inadequate response, saying federal help was minimal and expressing that residents felt abandoned after the disaster.
- The hearing ended with calls to stop blaming agencies, rally to rebuild, and enact new laws, including better alert systems, to prevent future tragedies.
11 Articles
11 Articles
‘Nobody came’: Flood survivors ask Texas lawmakers for better response efforts at committee hearing
On July 31, Texas lawmakers listened to local leaders, survivor testimonies, and experts in Kerrville at a state committee hearing to address flood response after the Hill Country Floods.
Texas flood survivors speak out
{beacon} Energy & Environment Energy & Environment The Big Story Flood survivors decry ack of aid, ‘toxic pit’ conditions Communities hit by the deadly Independence Day floods face a desperate and confused recovery bereft of state and federal aid, survivors told a field hearing of the Texas Legislature in Kerrville on Thursday. © AP…
Rural Texas county’s top leaders were asleep, out of town during initial hours of flood crisis
KERRVILLE, Texas — Two top leaders in a rural Texas county were asleep and a third was out of town in the initial hours of a catastrophic flood that came barreling through the region, causing widespread destruction and killing more than 130 people earlier this month. Read more...
‘Not a damned penny.’ Texas flood survivors look for help - Hawaii Tribune-Herald
KERR COUNTY, Texas — As soon as the raging waters receded July 4 in Central Texas, Mike Richards led a group of volunteers to his property along the Guadalupe River to search for survivors. Instead, they found corpses, 10 of them, including a man who appeared to have bled to death as he waited for help.
“Nobody came”: Hill Country flooding survivors recount anguish, neglect during emotional hearing
By Hayden Betts, The Texas Tribune July 31, 2025 ““Nobody came”: Hill Country flooding survivors recount anguish, neglect during emotional hearing” was first published by The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans — and engages with them — about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues. Sign up for The Brief, The Texas Tribune’s daily newsletter that keeps readers up to speed on the most es…
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