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Crews search flood-ravaged central Texas for missing persons

On Wednesday, search teams continued to sift through piles of debris and mounds in Texas Hill Country as the hopes of finding survivors diminished five days after flash flooding ravaged through the area, killing at least 120 people, many of them children.

According to the figures released by Texas Governor Greg Abbott, as of Tuesday evening there were still more than 170 missing people. Since Friday, no one has been found alive.

Kerr County was the site of most fatalities and missing persons. Kerrville was completely devastated by torrential rains that swept through the county early Friday morning, July 4. The rains dropped more than one foot of rain in under an hour, and flooded the Guadalupe River up to nearly 30 feet (9 metres).

At a press briefing on Wednesday, Sheriff Larry Leitha informed reporters that the death toll for Kerr County had reached 95, which included three dozen children.

This figure includes at the very least 27 girls and their counselors who attend Camp Mystic on the Guadalupe, a Christian summer retreat for girls.

Authorities have warned the death toll is likely to continue rising as floodwaters recede.

In New Mexico, a flash flooding on Tuesday killed three people, including two young children. The village of Ruidoso is located in the mountains, around 135 miles (216 km) south of Albuquerque.

The village released a statement that the flooding was caused by heavy rains that fell over burn scars from wildfires. This led to a rapid runoff that saw the Rio Ruidoso River reach a new record of 20 feet. That's five feet higher than the previous high.

Scientists claim that climate change is causing extreme flooding events to be more damaging and frequent by creating warmer, wetter weather patterns.

The public officials in Texas were questioned for days about whether they should have warned the people earlier, allowing them to get to higher ground before the floodwaters raged.

The sheriff was pressed again at Wednesday's press conference to answer questions about the time it took officials to respond to the "Code Red" warnings regarding the flash floods that occurred in the early morning hours of the 4th.

He refused to directly respond, stating that his main focus was finding the missing victims. A full analysis on what went wrong in the response will come later.

He said, "We will respond to those questions." I can't say when, but it will be in a few weeks or days. We will get them. "We're not trying deflect them."

Dalton Rice, the city manager of Kerrville, said that the amount and speed of rain fell exceeded forecasts. There was no time to evacuate people without putting them in further danger.

Abbott announced on Tuesday that Texas lawmakers would convene a session special later this month in order to investigate emergency response and provide funds for disaster relief. (Reporting from Jane Ross in Kerrville, Additional reporting by Rich McKay, Andrew Hay and Joseph Ax. Writing by Joseph Ax. Editing by Frank McGurty & Bill Berkrot.

(source: Reuters)