At least 13 dead, 20+ girl campers missing in Texas flooding

July 4 (UPI) -- At least 13 have died, and more than 20 girl campers are missing amid deadly flooding along the Guadalupe River in Kerr County, Texas, and beyond.

More fatalities are expected, Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha announced on Friday, and Texas Acting Gov. Dan Patrick said more than 20 girls are missing from Camp Mystic in Kerr County, CNN reported.

Although the girls are missing, they aren't necessarily lost, said Patrick, who is the state's lieutenant governor but is its acting governor while Gov. Greg Abbott is away from the state.

"I am working in coordination with the state's emergency response team on the significant flooding that occurred in the Hill Country and Concho Valley regions in the early hours of this morning," Patrick said in a prepared statement.

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"The Kerr County Sheriff's Office has reported catastrophic flooding in the area, with several people missing and confirmed loss of life," Patrick said.

"Additional rain is forecast in those areas," he added. "Even if the rain is light, more flooding can occur in those areas. There is an ongoing threat for possible flash flooding from San Antonio to Waco for the next 24 to 48 hours in addition to the continued risks in west and central Texas."

Flooding along the Guadalupe River and its tributaries caused deaths in Kerr County, where a flash flood emergency was in effect until 2 p.m. CDT from Hunt through Kerrville and Center Point and into parts of Kendall County, WOAI reported.

"The state of Texas is urging all available resources to respond to the devastating flooding around the Kerr County area," Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said earlier on Friday in a post on X.

"That includes water rescue teams, sheltering centers, the National Guard [and] the Texas Department of Public Safety," Abbott said. "The immediate priority is saving lives."

The Kerr County Sheriff's Office confirmed fatalities but won't release additional information until the next of kin are notified.

"The entire county is an extremely active scene," the sheriff's office posted Friday morning on social media.

"Residents are encouraged to shelter in place and not attempt travel," the KCSO post says. "Those near creeks, streams and the Guadalupe River should immediately move to higher ground."

First responders have done dozens of swift-water rescues and continue to do so at the flooding continues, county chief executive Rob Kelly told media.

Kerrville Police and Fire crews are evacuating residents as the flooding continues during what the National Weather Service has called a "very dangerous and life-threatening flood event," WOAI reported.

The river was expected to cause significant damage as it rose to nearly 32 feet in Kerrville and nearly 31 feet in Comfort, and more than 2,600 properties were without power during the early afternoon hours.

Heavy rainfall and storms started on Thursday and continued through the overnight hours and well into Friday morning.

Local rainfall was expected to mostly end during the afternoon hours in Kerr County, which is located about 90 miles northwest of San Antonio and 125 miles west of Austin.