Number of missing plummets to 3 in hard-hit Kerr County in wake of Texas floods

The number of people reported missing following the historic floods of July 4 in Kerr County, Texas, has increased from more than 160 to three, many of whom are now verified as being safe, officials announced on Saturday.

“Vast follow -up work” and “extraordinary efforts” were credited with the reduction after 173 people throughout the state were missing in the middle of the two -story flood waters, officials told almost Identical declarations of the county of Kerr and the city of Kerrville.

“This remarkable progress reflects countless hours of coordinated research and rescue operations, meticulous investigation and an unwavering commitment to bring clarity and hope to families for an unimaginably difficult period,” said Kerrville City Dalton Rice.

Dozens and dozens of people have been missing by expensive beings have been removed from a list of disappeared people after verification of their security, officials said.

“Many people who were initially reported as missing have been verified as safe and withdrawn from the list,” said the statements of the city and the county. “This was a continuous effort because the investigators worked with diligence to verify the missing persons and confirm their status.”

Comté officials did not immediately respond to a request for more information on Saturday. It was not clear if only one factor, like the return of the mobile phone service interrupted by the storm, could have determined the locations initially reported as missing.

The rapid increase in flood waters in the early morning hours of July 4 swept the bungalows of the summer camp adjacent to the river, washed the cars off the roads and let survivors hang on the trees.

A “wave of flood” also swept the Guadalupe river, quickly increasing its depth and its damaging structures along its banks. Federal weather data has shown that the Guadalupe, which crosses the county of Kerville and Kerr, increased by 26 feet in 45 minutes.

At least 27 campers and staff members died at the Mystic camp, which hosted more than 750 children when they were flooded by the sudden floods of the river.

The resident warning process is under control, as the integrated federal alert and public warning system has not been used to send emergency alert system texts to mobile phones in the region.

Senator Ruben Gallego, D-Arizona, earlier this week, called for an official investigation into the response of the Ministry of Internal Security to Floods.

President Donald Trump visited Kerrville damaged by floods last week and defended the position of his administration, saying that the federal response was immediate. Internal security secretary Kristi Noem was “there from the start,” said the president.

State and premises officials also had to make criticism of the lack of timely alerts sent to residents before the floods.

“It happened so quickly that no one could have anticipated it,” Kerrville City director Dalton Rice said this week at NBC News, arguing that the historic and overwhelming nature of the floods could barely be avoided with the best warnings and forecasts.