In a remarkable development, officials in Kerr County, Texas—one of the areas hardest hit by the catastrophic July 4 floods—announced that the number of people still unaccounted for has plummeted from nearly 100 earlier this week to just three.
“Through extensive follow-up work among state and local agencies, many individuals who were initially reported as missing have been verified as safe and removed from the list,” the city of Kerrville confirmed in a news release. “This has been an ongoing effort as investigators worked diligently to verify reports of missing persons and confirm their status.”
At the peak of the disaster, more than 160 people were listed as missing in the county. As recently as a few days ago, that number stood at 97.
Kerrville City Manager Dalton Rice expressed deep gratitude for the massive recovery efforts:
“We are profoundly grateful to the more than 1,000 local, state, and federal authorities who have worked tirelessly in the wake of the devastating flood that struck our community. Thanks to their extraordinary efforts, the number of individuals previously listed as missing has dropped from over 160 to three.”
Outside Kerr County, three individuals remain missing in Travis County and one in Burnet County, according to the latest statewide data.
The overall death toll from the July 4 flooding disaster across Texas has climbed to a heartbreaking 134. Kerr County alone accounted for 107 of those lives lost—including 70 adults and 37 children—marking one of the deadliest natural disasters in the state’s recent history.