{"id":156780,"date":"2025-07-13T02:32:57","date_gmt":"2025-07-13T02:32:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/texas-floods-latest-death-toll-rises-to-129-as-trump-suggests-texans-got-a-lot-of-warning-in-advance-the-independent\/"},"modified":"2025-07-13T02:32:57","modified_gmt":"2025-07-13T02:32:57","slug":"texas-floods-latest-death-toll-rises-to-129-as-trump-suggests-texans-got-a-lot-of-warning-in-advance-the-independent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/texas-floods-latest-death-toll-rises-to-129-as-trump-suggests-texans-got-a-lot-of-warning-in-advance-the-independent\/","title":{"rendered":"Texas floods latest: Death toll rises to 129 as Trump suggests Texans got \u2018a lot of warning\u2019 in advance – The Independent"},"content":{"rendered":"

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.
Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in<\/span>Please refresh your browser to be logged in<\/span>
Local officials were repeatedly denied state funding for emergency flood warning system at Camp Mystic site but didn\u2019t deploy Amber Alert-style warning according to report
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
<\/a><\/a>Kerr County officials reportedly failed to activate a powerful public alert system<\/a> that could have saved lives before last week\u2019s devastating flood.
The Washington Post<\/em><\/a> revealed that despite having the technology to turn every mobile phone in the river valley into a loud alarm, local authorities did not deploy it as the Guadalupe River swelled to record levels on July 4<\/a>, inundating campsites and homes.
The system, which costs nothing, was implemented <\/a>in place of an expensive siren system<\/a> that county officials reportedly couldn’t obtain funding<\/a> for.
It has also emerged that at Camp Mystic<\/a>, where 27 campers and counselors perished in the floods<\/a>, FEMA<\/a> had removed dozens of buildings from flood hazard maps<\/a> after an appeal, likely to lower insurance costs and be subject to less arduous regulations, the Associated Press reports.
On Friday, Donald Trump<\/a> visited Kerrville, Texas<\/a>, to assess the damage from last week’s devastating flash flooding<\/a>. The president and First Lady Melania Trump<\/a> met with rescue workers involved in responding to the disaster.
There have been at least 129 deaths, and more than 160 people are missing, one week later.
More rain is expected overnight on Saturday and into Sunday.
The body of a 22-year-old man has been recovered in the Texas Hill Country after devastating floodwaters inundated his family\u2019s river cabin on July 4, his father confirmed.
Aidan Heartfield was with three friends when they were caught in a sudden deluge that saw water levels inside the property rise from inches to several feet in moments.
The tragedy unfolded around 4 a.m. when Thad Heartfield received a frantic call from his son, Aidan, who was at the cabin in Hunt with his girlfriend and two friends, NBC News reports<\/a>.
Aidan reported four inches of water inside the property, but within seconds, the water surged to approximately four feet. Mr Heartfield urged his son to escape to the highway, but the rapidly rising waters swept away their cars.
Aidan then told his father he needed to help his girlfriend, handing the phone to one of the other girls. Within moments, she told Mr Heartfield that his son and the others were gone, before the line went dead.
Thad Heartfield confirmed on Saturday to KFDM\/Fox 4 News<\/a> that Aidan\u2019s body had been recovered. His longtime girlfriend, Ella Cahill, and friends Joyce Badon and Reese Manchaca, both 21, were also found deceased.
\u201cI want to thank everyone in the community for their prayers and support,\u201d Mr Heartfield said. \u201cIt has meant the world to us and sustained us through this difficult time. I know it has been important to all of the affected families. This is an important step toward closure.\u201d
Kerr County officials reportedly failed to activate a powerful public alert system that could have saved lives before last week\u2019s devastating flood, leaving almost 100 dead and over 160 missing in the county. The Washington Post<\/em><\/a> revealed that despite having the technology to turn every mobile phone in the river valley into a loud alarm, local authorities did not deploy it as the Guadalupe River swelled to record levels on July 4, inundating campsites and homes.
As the river began to flood, county officials eventually sent text message alerts, but only to pre-registered residents. Even as a federal meteorologist warned of worsening conditions and extreme risk, the more potent notification system, previously used for flood alerts, remained inactive. The National Weather Service, however, began sending its own alerts through this system from 1:14 a.m. on July 4.
The Integrated Public Alert & Warning System (IPAWS) is a mass notification programme used by National Weather Service meteorologists for imminent threats. Like Amber Alerts, IPAWS warnings force phones to vibrate and emit a unique, jarring tone, provided they are on and have a signal. It also enables local officials to send targeted messages.
Abdul-Akeem Sadiq, a University of Central Florida professor researching emergency management, told The Post<\/em> that residents are more likely to trust messages from local government. He suggested the alert could have made a significant difference, despite patchy mobile service and many likely asleep as floodwaters surged.
For years, Kerr County officials have discussed a more robust flash-flood warning system, including the installation of expensive sirens. Lacking that infrastructure, they adopted IPAWS, which cost nothing, to alert more people.
IPAWS had been activated by Kerr County twice before, most recently in July 2024 for flash floods. Just two days after this year\u2019s deadly storm, amid further thunderstorms, county officials did<\/em> use IPAWS to warn of another potential round of river flooding.
House Democrats addressed a letter <\/a>to President Donald Trump and weather infrastructure officials on Friday, expressing \u201cdeep concern\u201d about the flooding in Kerr County, Texas, and the \u201cstructural shortcomings at the federal, state, and local levels that contributed to the tragic loss of life.\u201d
It comes as Trump toured disaster areas alongside local officials on Friday.<\/a>
Gustaf Kilander<\/strong> reports.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said at a press conference today that the response to the Texas flash floods is President Donald Trump\u2019s vision for how FEMA will operate in the future.
\u201cSome of what you saw for our response in Texas is going to be a lot of how President Trump envisions what FEMA would look like into the future … emergencies are locally executed. They are state-managed. The federal government comes in and supports.\u201d
Watch her remarks below:
As floodwaters in Texas<\/a> rose in the early morning of July 4, a local firefighter petitioned for an emergency alert to quickly be sent out, but local officials do not appear to have followed his request until about an hour later, according to leaked audio.
Josh Marcus <\/strong>reports.
Federal regulators repeatedly approved appeals to remove Camp Mystic’s buildings<\/a> from their 100-year flood map, easing oversight as the camp operated and expanded in a hazardous floodplain<\/a> in the years leading up to the central Texas flash floods<\/a> of July 4, according to new reporting by The Associated Press.
Continue reading…<\/em>
Two days after severe floods hit Central Texas, nearly two-thirds of calls to FEMA’s disaster assistance line went unanswered, according to documents obtained by The New York Times<\/em><\/a>.
The lack of response was due to the agency firing hundreds of contractors at call centers, a person familiar with the matter, speaking anonymously, told the paper.
The contractors were laid off on July 5 after their contracts expired and were not renewed, based on the documents and the source’s account.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who oversees FEMA, has introduced a new rule requiring her personal approval for expenses exceeding $100,000 and delayed renewing these contracts until Thursday, five days after they expired.
The report of unanswered calls on July 6, which had not been previously revealed, coincides with increased scrutiny of FEMA\u2019s flood response efforts and questions about the agency\u2019s future.
A spokesperson for DHS told the Times<\/em>: \u201cWhen a natural disaster strikes, phone calls surge, and wait times can subsequently increase. Despite this expected influx, FEMA\u2019s disaster call center responded to every caller swiftly and efficiently, ensuring no one was left without assistance.\u201d
Individuals impacted by disasters can apply for various types of financial assistance from FEMA, including a one-time payment of $750, which can help cover their immediate needs, such as food or other essential supplies for those who have lost their homes.
On July 5, as floodwaters started to go down, FEMA received 3,027 calls from disaster survivors and responded to 3,018, or about 99.7 percent, according to the records. Contractors from four call center companies handled most of the calls.
However, Noem did not renew the contracts with the four companies, and hundreds of contractors were fired, according to the documents and the person briefed on the matter.
The next day, July 6, FEMA received 2,363 calls and answered 846, or about 35.8 percent, according to the documents. Things got worse.
On Monday, July 7, the agency received 16,419 calls and answered 2,613, or approximately 15.9 percent, according to the documents.
Some FEMA officials grew frustrated with the lapse in contracts and the delay in Noem’s response, according to the person briefed on the matter and the documents.
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in<\/span>Please refresh your browser to be logged in<\/span><\/p>\n

source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged inLocal officials were repeatedly denied state funding for emergency flood warning system at Camp Mystic site but didn\u2019t deploy Amber Alert-style warning according to reportFrom reproductive […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":156781,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-156780","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-world","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/156780","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=156780"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/156780\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/156781"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=156780"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=156780"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=156780"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}