At least 50 people killed in Texas floods, including children

(Patria) - More than 50 people, including at least 15 children, have died in catastrophic floods that hit the US state of Texas early on Friday.

The torrent of water burst out of the Guadalupe River and ravaged several counties, with dozens of people still missing, including 27 girls from the Christian summer camp Camp Mystic in Kerr County.

The hardest hit was Kerr County, where at least 43 people died, local sheriff Larry Leitha announced at a press conference. Five children and 12 adults have not yet been identified. At least eight more deaths were recorded in the neighboring counties of Kendall, Travis, Burnet and Tom Green.

"Rescuers have already pulled hundreds of people out and continue searching for the missing," said Texas Governor Greg Abbott, adding that the search would continue non-stop.

But as rescuers search for the missing, Texas authorities face criticism for their slow response and the fact that summer camps and residents along the river were not warned or evacuated in time.

Private weather company AccuWeather and the US National Weather Service (NWS) sent warnings about the possibility of flash floods several hours before the water burst its banks, urging residents to move to higher ground. Despite this, the evacuation was not carried out in time.

"These warnings should have enabled the evacuation of camps like Camp Mystic," said a statement from AccuWeather, which called the Texas Hill Country one of the most vulnerable areas in the US when it comes to flash floods, due to its terrain and numerous waterways.

In just two hours, the water level at Camp Mystic rose by 6.7 meters, said meteorologist Bob Fogarty from the NWS office in Austin and San Antonio. The water gauge stopped working when the level reached 9 meters.

"We know it's raining, we know the river is rising. But no one could have predicted such a disaster," said Rob Kelly, the elected chief official of Kerr County.