US Edition1987 Texas Flood Survivors Reflect on Nearly 40 Years of Loss, Faith and Hope Amid Tragedy
COMFORT, TEXAS, JUL 7 – Rev. Richard Koons recalls the 1987 flood that killed 10 campers as nearly 30 died in the recent Camp Mystic flood with similar rapid Guadalupe River rises, officials said.
- On July 17, 1987, an intense downpour delivered a foot of rain within three quarters of an hour, causing the Guadalupe River in Texas to flood swiftly and trap campers from the Pot O’ Gold Ranch camp in Comfort during their evacuation efforts.
- The evacuation followed an early morning order due to flood risk, but a bus stalled in a foot of water and a following van was partly submerged as water rose quickly to about 35 feet, moving at 70 miles per hour.
- Ten teenagers died, one was never found, and thirty-three people were rescued by boat, military helicopter, and a local news helicopter while survivors formed human chains and climbed trees amid the fast-moving floodwaters.
- Richard Koons, a 26-year-old youth pastor at the time who lost sight of his wife and several students, described the flood as a 'massive wall of water' and has carried the weight of that day for nearly 40 years.
- Koons and his wife founded E3 Ministries to offer support by sharing their survival story and grief, emphasizing that survivors must live on and communities should surround families with love amid deep, lasting loss.
12 Articles
12 Articles
1987 Texas flood survivors reflect on nearly 40 years of loss, faith and hope amid tragedy
By Erin Jones Click here for updates on this story TEXAS (KTVT) — For those affected by the Texas floods, the pain is overwhelming and the road to healing is uncertain. How do you even begin to cope with such heartbreaking loss? It’s a question Richard Koons has been grappling with for nearly 40 years. “With all of this, it brings back fresh guilt,” he said. July 17, 1987, is a day forever ingrained in his memory. At the time, he was an assi…
Deadly floods at Camp Mystic: How the tragedy compares to a similar event in 1987 - Everett Post
Brandon Bell/Getty Images (NEW YORK) — Camp Mystic, the Christian girls summer camp that was hit with devastating floods on July 4, was part of an eerily similar tragedy that occurred almost 38 years ago to the day, officials said. That tragedy on July 17, 1987, known as the Guadalupe River Flood, began when 5 to 10 inches of rain fell in the upper headwaters of the Guadalupe River basin, which resulted in a “massive flood” that traveled down th…
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