Visiting flood-stricken central Texas on Friday, President Donald Trump praised the emergency response and community effort following what he called “a really horrific and deadly flood,” saying he has “never seen anything like this” before.
At least 135 people were killed during the flooding, with the final death toll still being tallied as searches continued across affected areas. Rescue efforts led to more than 1,500 people being saved, including 169 children at the Camp Mystic summer camp by Coast Guard crews, as mentioned during Trump’s address.
That operation stood out as one of the most urgent, after the Guadalupe River rose an estimated 26 feet in just 45 minutes, inundating the camp where dozens of young girls died in their cabins while they slept.
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The Texas Chief of Emergency Management, Nim Kid, confirmed that Gov. Greg Abbott declared a state disaster in 21 counties to fast-track public and individual assistance efforts. Nineteen other states contributed resources to support Texas in the aftermath of the floods, Kid said. In total, more than 2,200 personnel from state agencies assisted local responders.
Standing beside his wife, Melania, Trump recounted meeting with grieving families, saying, “We just gave our warmest condolences. … But you say to yourself, ‘How do you give condolences? How do you do that to a young person that three days ago was here … and now is no longer here?'”
Melania Trump, wearing a bracelet gifted by children from the camp in memory of those lost, said she and her husband prayed with the families and shared in their sorrow.
“We just met with the wonderful families. We pray with them, we hug, we hold hands, they share the stories. And I met a beautiful young ladies. They gave me this special bracelet from the camp in honor of all of the little girls that they lost their lives.”
Trump repeatedly acknowledged the role of first responders, law enforcement and Coast Guard teams.
“The people that are doing it are unbelievable people. … You couldn’t get better people than this anywhere,” he said, also noting the role of Customs and Border Protection and trauma teams. The Federal Emergency Management Agency deployed multiple emergency response units, and the Army Corps of Engineers was also engaged in the recovery.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who has chaired all three of Trump’s presidential campaigns in Texas, announced that a public hearing would be held in the region within three weeks.
“We’re going to come to them and we’ll stay here as long as it takes to hear their stories and their needs and their wants,” he said.
Trump listed several public officials present during his visit, including Republican Sens. John Cornyn and Ted Cruz, Attorney General Ken Paxton, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and several Texas representatives. He also thanked Cecilia Abbott, the governor’s wife, and praised Gov. Abbott as someone with whom he had become close both politically and personally.
Trump said federal assistance was authorized within minutes after Texas requested it, a point reiterated by FEMA and state leaders.
The search for missing persons remains active.
“There’s a lot of missing children, possibly. Mostly we don’t know, but they’re still looking and they’ll find everybody,” the president said.
This was not a typical natural disaster for the region, with Trump recalling local residents who said they were used to annual flooding “in much smaller doses,” but never anything like this.
The president also referenced historic floods in the area, noting one in 1932 and another 12 years ago, both of which he said were “half of what this was.” Describing the floodwaters as “a giant wave in the Pacific Ocean that the best surfers in the world would be afraid to surf,” Trump said the torrent came through in the night when most residents were in bed.
He called the flooding a one-in-500 or one-in-1,000-year event, citing a description from an official. He reiterated his belief that preventive measures must be strengthened, saying, “We’re also taking historic action to ensure that such a nightmare never happens again.”
Praise was also directed at the volunteers. More than 12,300 of them assisted in recovery efforts, contributing a combined 861,000 hours of support. As the state continues to clean up and rebuild, many local residents have focused on reopening destroyed infrastructure, including Camp Mystic. One man involved in the effort, identified only as a local partner, said they planned to reopen quickly with help from state officials and outside assistance.
Trump said the scale of devastation was beyond anything he had seen in past disasters. “I’ve gone to some real bad ones. I’ve never seen anything like this.”
