Samaritan's Purse is working in flood-wracked Kerr County and Tom Green County in Texas.
Heavy rains caused flash flooding on Friday, July 4, leaving a trail of extensive damage and claiming more than 100 lives across several Texas counties.
Samaritan’s Purse North American Ministries (NAM) and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association’s Rapid Response Team (BGEA-RRT) have deployed to hard-hit Kerr County, Texas. The area, nestled in the Hill Country and home to Camp Mystic, was hit hard, and the majority of reported deaths are from that county. The mayor of Kerrville, Joe Herring, said the Guadalupe River rose 26 feet in 45 minutes early on Friday morning.
Our volunteer teams started work on Tuesday morning, July 8. Volunteers serve as the hands and feet of our Lord, helping homeowners with property cleanup and mud-outs. In all we do, we aim to share the Good News of Jesus Christ with hurting people. Our host church for this response is Kerrville Bible Church at 898 Harper Rd. A Disaster Relief Unit and support equipment, which deployed from our Southwest Ministry Center in north Texas, are stationed there. Check out spvolunteer.org for the latest information and to sign up to assist.
Damage extends throughout central Texas. Please keep those affected by these tragic events in your prayers.
We are also opening a second relief site in San Angelo, Texas, in Tom Green County. Some staff members and equipment are already on the ground there, and a Disaster Relief Unit—stocked with more tools and equipment–departed from North Carolina on Tuesday. It should arrive in San Angelo on Thursday. Volunteers start serving on July 11. Our host church is PaulAnn Baptist Church at 2531 Smith Blvd.
On Sunday, Franklin Graham posted the following via Facebook: “This morning I joined Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem via phone from Alaska to pray for families gathered in a church in Kerrville, Texas, to await word about their missing children and loved ones. I read Scripture to them and prayed for them, and Secretary Kristi Noem prayed for them as well. We need to continue to surround these devastated families and communities in prayer. Also pray for the hundreds involved in search and rescue efforts with more rain predicted.”
People climb over debris on a bridge atop the Guadalupe River in Ingram, Texas, on July 5.
More than 800 people were plucked from the waters during initial rescue efforts, including scores saved by helicopter. Intense search efforts remain underway. A number of people are still unaccounted for; among them are some from Camp Mystic, a Christian girls retreat in Hunt, Texas, where 6.5 inches of rain fell in a three-hour period. Twenty-seven people from the camp are confirmed dead.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott declared Sunday, July 6, as a day of prayer for the state in light of the deadly flooding and the continuing search for survivors.
Story originally posted July 5; now updated through July 8.
