Hero Rescues People From the Texas Floods

Rain during the summer in the Texas Hill Country is fairly common. But the thunderstorms that were fed by the remnants of Tropical Storm Barry during the early morning on  July 4, 2025, inundated the area that has been known to have flash floods.

The floods that began during the night and killed more than 100 people, reported NBC News,  were a worse case scenario when the storm stalled on the south fork of the Guadalupe River that was the home of many summer camps and dumped 10-12 inches of rainfall in six hours. Despite flash flood warnings, the river’s rapid rise (26 feet in just 45 minutes) caught people by surprise.

Thanks to a newly enlisted Coast Guard swimmer Scott Ruskan, it could have been a lot worse, reported CNN. It was his first rescue mission, and he never expected to save 165 people at Camp Mystic; a Christian girls camp, on the banks of the Guadalupe River

The Dramatic Rescue at Camp Mystic
Ruskan’s team received a call from Task Force 1 – a Texas search-and-rescue team early in the morning that Friday telling them that they were urgently needed in central Texas. By 7:00 am, the team deployed and headed for Camp Mystic where 200 campers and staff were waiting to be rescued,

The camp could not be reached by water, the river was too high for boats, and the roads and bridges were washed out, which meant that the people, mostly children, had to be evacuated by air.

Getting into the landing zone near the camp has proved to be difficult, what should have been a one-hour flight turned into over six hours to get through the storm. When on the ground, Ruskan met up with the kids who had been rescued from their bunks and reached higher ground. He told CNN that the kids were, “mostly all scared, terrified, cold, having probably the worst day of their life.”

The rest of his team were sent to another dangerous location, and more people could fit in the aircraft if Ruskan was left behind as a triage coordinator. At the camp, he did his best to calm distressed campers and when a Texas National Guard aircraft landed at the soccer and archery field at the camp, he led the kids (some of them with cut-up feet because they fled without shoes) 10 to 15 at a time to be rescued. All 165 campers were rescued.

He attributes his ability to rescue the kids due to their bravery saying, ““it made me a better rescuer.”

Even though the staff worked hard to rescue all the kids when the flood overran the camp, at least 27 of the campers and counselors perished in the floods. The camp’s director Dick Eastman  tragically died while trying to rescue campers.

Ways You  Can Help
While rescuers are still searching for missing people, the devastation from the floods in the Hill Country is very severe. Survivors of the flood need housing, food, and clothing. Here are ways, according to Kut News, that you can help.

Kerr County Flood Relief Fund
The Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country has started a relief fund to help the organizations providing rescue, recovery, and relief efforts in the communities of Hunt, Ingram, Kerrville, Center Point and Comfort. Click on CommunityFoundation.net for more information.

The Red Cross
The American Red Cross has set up shelters in the region You can donate on the website at  RedCross.org/donate and select Your Local Red Cross or Disaster Relief as a donation option.  Or you can donate over the phone by calling 800-HELP NOW (1-800-435-7669) .

World Central Kitchen
World Central Kitchen, a nonprofit founded by Chef José Andrés, has a team In Kerrville and in Camp La Junta that is providing food and water to flood victims. You can donate via their website WCK.org for details on donating funds and for updates.

The Salvation Army
The Salvation Army has set up a mobile kitchen to provide meals and water for people in Kerrville that were affected by the floods. You can also bring  non-perishable goods, hygiene items, diapers, wipes, and trash bags to the center. You can donate at HelpSalvationArmy.org or by phone by calling 1-800-SAL-ARMY.

Austin Pets Alive!
The Austin animal shelter is providing medical care  and transportation to its shelter. They have already taken in over 150 pets. They are looking for people willing to foster animals, volunteers, and donations. Go to AustinPetsAlive.org for more information.