A girls’ summer camp cut short by deadly disaster

Camp Mystic, a Christian girls’ camp perched on the banks of the Guadalupe River in Texas, was a place of laughter, prayer, and adventure just days ago.

Among the girls at the camp was eight-year-old Renee Smajstrla, smiling ear-to-ear in a picture taken on one of those days – “having the time of her life” with her friends.

But the next day, the camp she, and so many other young girls loved, turned into the site of one of the deadliest flood disasters in recent Texas history.

Smajstrla was among those killed.

“She will forever be living her best life at Camp Mystic,” her uncle Shawn Salta wrote on Facebook.

Photos show the eerie aftermath: the bunk beds are still there – mud-caked and toppled over, the detritus of a summer camp cut tragically short.

Destroyed personal belongings are scattered across soaked interiors where children once gathered for Bible study and campfire songs.

At least 59 people – among them camp’s longtime director, Richard “Dick” Eastland, and several young campers – have been confirmed dead.

Eleven of its campers and one camp counsellor remain missing. Many of the girls who remain missing were sleeping in low-lying cabins less than 500ft (150m) from the riverbank, US media report.

Camp Mystic has been operated by the same family for generations, offering girls a chance to grow “spiritually” in a “wholesome” Christian atmosphere, according to its website.

Families from all across Texas and the US send their daughters each summer to swim, canoe, ride horses, and form lifelong friendships.

But the beauty of the Guadalupe River, which draws so many to the area, also proved deadly.

The floodwaters arrived with little warning, ripping through the picturesque riverfront area that is home to nearly 20 youth camps.

Though Camp Mystic suffered the greatest losses, officials say the scale of the disaster is far-reaching.

Nearby, the all-girls camp Heart O’ the Hills also faced flooding.

Its co-owner and director, Jane Ragsdale, was among the dead. Fortunately, the camp was out of session at the time.

A statement from the camp said, “Most of those who were on camp at the time have been accounted for and are on high ground… We are mourning the loss of a woman who influenced countless lives and was the definition of strong and powerful.”

Questions are now mounting over why so many camps were situated so close to the river, and why more was not done to evacuate the children in time.

Congressman Chip Roy, who represents the area, acknowledged the devastation while urging caution against premature blame.

“The response is going to be, ‘We’ve gotta move all these camps – why would you have camps down here by the water?'” Roy said.

“Well, you have camps by the water because it’s by the water. You have camps near the river because it’s a beautiful and wonderful place to be.”

As recovery efforts continue, families wait anxiously for news of the missing. Search and rescue teams – some navigating by boat, others combing through debris – are working around the clock.

Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha said on Sunday the search for survivors continued.

“Until we can get them reunited families, we are not going to stop,” City Manager Dalton Rice said.

Governor Greg Abbott has declared a state of emergency, and officials warn the final toll may rise in the days to come.