Video shows destruction caused by Texas floods as more than 50 die
Drone footage of the Texas floods shows the extent of damage the water has caused as life in the rural areas came to a standstill.
The Texas floods continue to wreck the Hill Country in the southern United States as more than 50 people have died so far and several remain missing.
Multiple flash flood warnings remained in place across central Texas after water surged through communities. The Guadalupe River rose by 26 feet (eight meters) in just 45 minutes. Drone footage shows the extent of damage the water has caused as life in the rural areas came to a standstill.
According to the footage, bare concrete platforms remain on lands where houses used to stand, with piles of rubble lining the banks of the river.
Local media reported that rescuers lifted people from rooftops and trees, sometimes forming human chains to retrieve them from the floodwater.
Search for the missing continues
Rescue operations continued through Saturday as rescue teams searched for the missing people, including 27 missing girls who were swept away while attending Camp Mystic summer camp, with the likelihood of finding more survivors appearing to diminish.
The worst affected by torrential rains was Texas's Kerr County, where 43 people, including 15 children, died, followed by Travis County, where four people died. Two people also died in Burnet County, while another died in Tom Green County.
In Kerr County, the waterways gorged by thunderstorms tore through vast swathes of the area, trapping families inside trailer homes and sweeping people into the currents. At least 27 campers from Camp Mystic, an all-girls summer camp along the Guadalupe River in Kerr County, remain unaccounted for, officials said at a briefing. Authorities said that they did not know how many people were missing in total.
Governor Greg Abbott vowed that authorities will work around the clock and said new areas were being searched as the water receded. He declared Sunday a day of prayer for the state.
"I urge every Texan to join me in prayer this Sunday — for the lives lost, for those still missing, for the recovery of our communities, and for the safety of those on the front lines,” he said in a statement.
