At least 2 dead, hundreds rescued as major floods hit Texas Hill Country for second year in a row

From KUT News:

This story was updated at 5:30 p.m.

At least two people have died in dangerous overnight flooding that prompted evacuations and damaged homes, schools and roads in the Hill Country. This week’s floods came almost exactly a year after some of the worst flooding in state history struck the Kerrville area.

Gov. Greg Abbott said in a 5 p.m. Thursday news conference that a man died after he was swept away in an RV in Comfort, a city located southeast of Kerrville. The Uvalde Police Department said a man also died about four miles north of the city Thursday morning after his vehicle was swept away by floodwaters.

Multiple rounds of storms have hit Texas this week, resulting in “catastrophic flooding,” according to the National Weather Service. The agency’s preliminary data shows that Uvalde received more than 21 inches of rainfall from Monday to Thursday, while Kerrville received more than 19.

A tornado also touched down in San Antonio on Wednesday, damaging homes and businesses.

The continued flooding has triggered multiple flash flood emergencies, on top of numerous flash flood warnings, in the Hill Country on Thursday, including for parts of the Guadalupe River, Pedernales River, Uvalde County and Kerr County.

A flash flood emergency is issued in “exceedingly rare” situations in which catastrophic damage is expected and lives are threatened, according to the National Weather Service.

Hundreds rescued from floodwaters

Since Wednesday, more than 1,300 people helped respond to the recent floods, Abbott said. More than 230 people have been rescued.

Abbott said flooding of the Guadalupe River was more severe downstream from Kerrville than upstream, where many summer camps are located.

“Right now, I am informed that none of those camps are facing any type of danger,” he said at an 11 a.m. press conference on Thursday.

The area around Comfort, Texas, is experiencing the brunt of the flooding, Abbott said.

Some areas hit harder than catastrophic July 2025 floods

Less than two weeks after the anniversary of the July 4, 2025, floods, residents in the Hill Country found themselves in familiar territory: scrambling for higher ground and rushing to protect lives and property.

The 2025 floods killed more than 130 people in Texas on the Fourth of July weekend, including 25 campers, two counselors and the owner of Camp Mystic along the Guadalupe River.

It was one of the deadliest flood events on record in state history. The deaths at Camp Mystic, in particular, shocked Texans and led to multiple lawsuits that remain ongoing. In April, the camp abandoned its attempt to reopen this summer.

Some residents in the flooded areas reported that damage appeared to be worse on Thursday morning than last year.

“My neighborhood — I’ve lived there a long, long, long, long time. I’ve never seen it flood. It flooded today,” said Stuart Gross, the code enforcement officer in the town of Ingram, just outside of Kerrville. “It was crazy.”

Just last week, Texas Public Radio reported how Hill Country residents are working to recover from the emotional aftermath of the July 4 floods.

“One thing I appreciate about just Kerr County and the surrounding areas is that they made huge strides in the very beginning to understand that mental health is a huge portion of how we’re going to heal as a community,” therapist Sarah Stricker told TPR.

Gov. Abbott promises to make state resources available

Evacuations are underway in the region, and officials are considering further evacuation orders.

Flood sirens in the region worked, Abbott said, with the exception of one that was delayed by five or 10 minutes early Thursday morning.

Abbott said he plans to travel to areas of Texas affected by flooding over the next 24 hours.

“The state is providing all available resources to make sure that [residents] will be taken care of,” he said. “They will be rescued, they will be made safe.”

Helicopters and drones are scanning the area to assist people who are stranded.

After some minor additional rain chances Thursday evening, the National Weather Service forecast for the Kerrville area shows dry conditions for the next several days.

This is a developing story.

The Texas Newsroom’s Blaise Gainey contributed to this story.

Clarification: An earlier version of this story reported that the victim in Uvalde was a woman.