Texas flood deaths climb to more than 100

The death toll from flash floods that hit central Texas on Friday has now climbed to more than 100, while other unknowns have disappeared.

Search and rescue teams are tumbling into muddy river banks as rains and thunderstorms threaten the area, but hope to find more survivors four days after the disaster.

Christian All Women’s Summer Camp Mystic confirmed that at least 27 girls and staff were among them. Ten girls and a camp counselor are still missing.

Meanwhile, the White House rejected the National Weather Service’s (NWS) budget cuts, which could curb disaster response.

At least 84 victims – 56 adults and 28 children – died in Kerr County, where the Guadalupe River poured and swelled before the outbreak before dawn on the fourth public holiday in July.

The county sheriff’s office said about 22 adults and 10 children have not been identified.

“Our hearts are everywhere with our families suffering from this unimaginable tragedy,” Mystic Camp said in a statement Monday.

Richard Eastland, 70, is co-owner and director of Mystic camp, died in an attempt to save the children, according to an American politician in Austin.

Del Way, a local pastor who knew the Eastland family, told the BBC: “He will be missed by the entire community (Mr. Eastland). He died.

In the latest forecast, the NWS predicts slower thunderstorms that could cause more flash flooding to the region.

Critics of the Trump administration have tried to link the disaster to thousands of layoffs at the NWS parent company of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The NWS office, which is responsible for forecasting in the area, has five employees on duty as thunderstorms brewed in Texas Thursday night, the usual number of overnight stays in severe weather.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt refused to blame the president for his attempts.

“That’s God’s act,” she told the Daily Brief on Monday.

“It was not the government’s fault that the flood hit, but there were early and unanimous warnings and the National Weather Service was done again.”

She outlined that the NWS office in Austin-San Antonio briefed local officials on the eve of the flood and issued a flood meter that afternoon, then issued a number of flood warnings that evening and before dawn on July 4.

Trump, who is expected to visit Texas later this week, retreated after being asked Sunday whether the federal government cuts disaster, initially seemed to shift the blame to what he called the “Biden setup” referring to his Democratic predecessor.

“But I won’t blame Biden for it, either,” he added. “I just said it was a 100-year disaster.”

Republican Senator Ted Cruz said at a press conference on Monday that it is not the time for “partisan instructions.”

A local campaigner, Nicole Wilson, called for a flood siren to be established in Kerr County, the establishment of other counties.

This system has been debated in Kerr County for nearly a decade, but funds have never been allocated.

Texas Lieutenant Dan Patrick admitted on Monday that such a sirens may have saved lives and said they should be in place next summer.

At the same time, condolences continue to pour in from all over the world.

King Charles III has written to President Trump to express his “deep sorrow” over the catastrophic flood.

The British Embassy in Washington said the king “expresses his deepest sympathy” for those who have lost their loved ones.