Photos: After Texas Hill Country flood, grief and recovery take hold

Community members visit Louise Hays Park in Kerrville to look at the damage left behind by the deadly Fourth of July flood in Kerr County on July 5, 2025. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

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An aerial view of damage along the Guadalupe River near Kerrville on July 5, 2025. Heavy rains in the Hill Country on July 4 caused catastrophic flooding and loss of life. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

A destroyed vehicle caught in between trees in Hunt, a small town where the the north and south forks of the Guadalupe River meet, about 13 miles west of Kerrville. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

Toppled trees and debris surround a sign offering directions to the Central Texas towns of Ingram and Leakey. (Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas Tribune)

Kerrville resident Charity Hicks, 38, right, hugs a friend at a food and supply drop off station at Cross Kingdom Church in Kerrville. (Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas Tribune)

Volunteers help set up a food station at Cross Kingdom Church. (Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas Tribune)

A child cleans off a table at a food and supply drop-off station at Cross Kingdom Church in Kerrville on Saturday. Recovery work began immediately in the area, part of the Central Texas Hill Country known as "Flash Flood Alley." (Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas Tribune)

Trees, uprooted by floodwaters, lie across a field in Hunt on July 5, 2025. Search parties have been combing the area looking for survivors or bodies. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

A helicopter surveys the Guadalupe River above Ingram. (Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas Tribune)

An American flag is placed on the trunk of a tree knocked down by the flood along HWY 39 in Ingram, just outside of Kerrville. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

Campers from Camp Waldemar in Hunt are reunited with their families at the Arcadia Live Theatre in Kerrville. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

Campers from Camp Waldemar in Hunt are reunited with their families at the Arcadia Live Theatre in Kerrville. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

Campers from Camp Waldemar in Hunt are reunited with their families at the Arcadia Live Theatre in Kerrville. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

A destroyed metal canoe next to next to the Guadalupe River at Kerrville's Flatrock Park. (Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas Tribune)

As U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem and U.S. Sen. John Cornyn look on, Gov. Greg Abbott signs an emergency proclamation during a press conference at the Hill Country Youth Event Center in Kerrville. (Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas Tribune)

Aerial view of Camp Mystic, where many children went missing after the flood. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

A view of Camp Mystic from the banks across the river after the flood as game wardens search the area and guard the grounds. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

A Texas Game Warden searches the area around Camp Mystic on Saturday. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

Another camp, the Heart O' the Hills Camp for Girls in Hunt, was heavily damaged by the flood. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

A pickup truck on the side of the road on Highway 39 in Hunt has a Texas flag hanging on its side with the date of the flood spray-painted on the side. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

Community members sort donations to help victims of the flood at the Cross Kingdom Church in Kerrville during the first Sunday service after the floods on July 6, 2025. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

Community members grieve at the Cross Kingdom Church in Kerrville during the first Sunday service after the floods on July 6, 2025. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

Community members grieve at the Cross Kingdom Church in Kerrville during the first Sunday service after the floods on July 6, 2025 (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

Recreational vehicles destroyed by the flood in Ingram on Monday July 7, 2025. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

Community members raise their candles in a moment of silence for lives lost in the flash floods during a San Antonio vigil on July 7, 2025. (Credit: Chris Stokes for The Texas Tribune)

People organize donated supplies at the Center Point Independent School District building on July 8, 2025. (Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas Tribune)

Governor Greg Abbott listens to Courtney Calhoun, a Kerr County resident and volunteer, during a press conference in Hunt on July 8, 2025. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

Volunteers clear flood debris as search and recovery efforts continue in Center Point on July 8, 2025. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

A sheriff deputy looks into a nook under flood debris during search and recovery in Center Point on July 8, 2025. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

Law enforcement officials and volunteers clear up piles of debris deposited by the flood in Center Point on July 8, 2025. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

Kerrville council members vote unanimously for an emergency disaster declaration during a city council meeting on July 8, 2025. (Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas Tribune)

Community members attend a prayer service for flood victims at the Antler Stadium in Kerrville on July 9, 2025. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

Community members attend a vigil for the victims of the floods at the Antler Stadium in Kerrville on July 9, 2025. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

A green ribbon honoring the Camp Mystic flood victims is seen on a shirt during a prayer service held at the Antler Stadium on July 9, 2025 in Kerrville. (Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas Tribune)

People pray during a vigil for flood victims at Antler Stadium on July 9, 2025 in Kerrville. (Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas Tribune)

People pray during a vigil for flood victims at Antler Stadium on July 9, 2025 in Kerrville. (Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas Tribune)

Community members add flowers to a memorial honoring victims of the flood in Kerrville on July 9, 2025. (Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune)

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