Texas flooding 911 calls from hard-hit Kerr County released: ‘Distressing’

(NEW YORK) — Hundreds of 911 calls during the July 4 Texas flood that devastated the Hill Country have been released from hard-hit Kerr County

The Kerrville Police Department released the calls late Thursday following Freedom of Information Act requests from eight media outlets.

“We want to caution the public that what you will hear on these calls is distressing. Some callers did not survive,” Kerrville Police Chief Chris McCall said in a video message on Thursday ahead of the release.

The first call related to flooding in western Kerr County came in to the police department’s 911 center at 2:52 a.m. on July 4, according to McCall.

Over the next six hours, the center, which receives all 911 calls for Kerr County, answered 435 calls, he said.

In the heart-wrenching 911 calls, many people said they weren’t able to get to safety due to the quickly rising waters.

“There’s no place for us to go,” one man can be heard saying in a call made at 3:35 a.m. that day.

“There’s no way to get out,” he said.

Another man called at 3:49 a.m., pleading for help.

“I need everything, sir. My house is so flooded,” the caller said. “The water is 3 feet up. I’ve got children here. I just need someone to be aware. I’m afraid this is all gonna go.”

One woman who called at 4:16 a.m. said she was in the attic of a house.

“The river has flooded the whole house. We’re trapped. We can’t get out,” she said.

Another woman called at 4:05 a.m. saying her children were stuck in a flooded house and were on the second floor.

“They’re right on the water. Our house is right on the water,” she said.

The operator said, “Just know we have everyone heading that way.”

At 4:19 a.m., a caller said they rescued a pair of young girls who had been swept away from Camp Mystic, a Christian all-girls sleepaway camp located along the Guadalupe River in Kerr County that saw devastating, deadly flooding.

“We’re OK, but we live about a mile down the road from Camp Mystic and we’ve already got two little girls who have come down the river and we’ve gotten to them, but I’m not sure how many else are out there,” the woman said.

The operator assured her that someone will be en route.

“The flooding is very, very bad,” she said.

Two people were working at the time when the calls started coming in regarding the flood, the police chief said while commending the operators for their handling of “extraordinary call volumes.”

“I’m immensely proud of our telecommunications operators,” he said. “These public safety team members showed incredible perseverance as they faced high call volumes and did their best to provide assistance and comfort to every caller.”

Some calls were transferred to neighboring dispatch centers based on the protocols regarding high volume, he said. Once they obtained critical information from callers, the operators “were faced with the difficult decision to disconnect and move on to the next call,” McCall said.

The 911 calls were released in their entirety, without redaction.

“The recordings contain disturbing content, which our community, employees, and family and friends of loved ones lost may find highly distressing,” the police department said in a statement. “Listener and audience discretion is advised.”

Over 130 people were killed in flash flooding across the Hill Country region, including at least 117 in Kerr County, officials said. At Camp Mystic, 28 people — including 25 campers, two counselors and the camp’s director — died as rapidly rising floodwaters inundated the camp.

Thursday’s release follows the release of 911 from other counties in the Hill Country, including Gillespie and Kendall counties.

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