Here are the stories on Texas Standard for Friday, July 3, 2026.
What investigators found at Camp Mystic
Nearly one year after catastrophic flooding in the Texas Hill Country claimed 139 lives, a legislative report offers the state’s most detailed account yet of what happened at Camp Mystic. Investigators identified shortcomings in emergency planning, evacuation procedures and communications while examining whether more lives could have been saved.
Michael Massengale, former justice on Texas’ First Court of Appeals and co-author of the report, joins the Standard with an overview.
Can technology provide earlier flood warnings?
In the wake of last summer’s devastating Hill Country floods, researchers are developing new tools designed to detect dangerous conditions before floodwaters become life-threatening. A team at the University of Texas at Arlington is building a real-time warning system that combines weather forecasting, river monitoring and predictive modeling to improve emergency alerts.
Nick Fang, professor of civil engineering at UT-Arlington, joins the Standard with more.
One volunteer’s lasting commitment
Many volunteers came to the Hill Country after last summer’s floods to help with rescue and recovery efforts. For Kerrville resident Ryan Logue, that work never really ended. Nearly a year later, he continues clearing debris from the Guadalupe River while helping families still searching for answers.
He told his story to Texas State student journalist Megan Weise.
When disaster brings people together
Following last summer’s Hill Country floods, one of the rescue teams that answered the call came from Mexico. Los Topos, an internationally known volunteer search-and-rescue organization, joined recovery efforts alongside local responders, offering a reminder of how humanitarian work can cross political and national boundaries.
Mando Rayo, host of the Tacos of Texas podcast, joins Texas Standard with the story.
Remembering a family’s narrow escape
What began as another Fourth of July weekend along the Guadalupe River quickly became a desperate race to higher ground for Judy Dale and her family. As Texas approaches the first anniversary of the Hill Country floods, we revisit her firsthand account of surviving one of the state’s deadliest natural disasters.
Judy Dale joins Texas Standard with her story.
The gang delivers another custom poem.
The week in Texas politics
The Texas Tribune’s Jasper Scherer joins the Standard with a recap of the week that was in Texas politics.
