Mourning begins in Texas where 170 are still missing

Shock has turned into grief across Texas where at least 120 people have died from flash floods and more were missing as the search for victims moved methodically along endless miles of rivers and rubble Thursday.

Photos of those who have died along with a colorful array of flowers and candles now decorate a fence in Hill Country — a growing tribute that reflects the enormity of the disaster in the region.

More than 170 people have been reported missing, most in Kerr County, where nearly 100 victims have been recovered. The death toll remained at 120 Thursday, nearly a week since the floods first hit.

Authorities say they have carefully gone over the list of those unaccounted for but those numbers are often tough to pin down in the immediate aftermath of a disaster.

More than 2,000 local, state and federal workers were involved in the search for victims. Stifling heat and mounds of trees, hunks of lumber and trash made the task more difficult.


At a small shopping center damaged in the floods, people piled debris gathered from the rivers. Officials hope to eventually set aside personal items so residents find their possessions.

On Wednesday, hundreds prayed, wept and held one another at a prayer service, among the first of many somber gatherings to come in the weeks ahead.

Some at the service wore green ribbons for the girls from Camp Mystic, the century-old Christian summer camp where at least 27 campers and counselors died.

Parents of children who were at the many summer camps in Hill Country have credited the teenage counselors with ushering campers to safety and helping keep them calm during the chaos.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott called on state lawmakers to approve funding for new warning systems and emergency communications in flood prone areas when the Legislature meets later this month. Abbott also asked for financial relief for the response and recovery efforts.



(AP Photo Ashley Landis)