A Family’s Narrow Escape Amid Texas Floods
Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin recently shared a harrowing experience that his family nearly faced during the deadly floods in Texas. The governor and his wife, Suzanne, were at their multimillion-dollar vacation home when the Guadalupe River surged to alarming levels, causing widespread devastation in the Hill Country region.
The floodwaters rose more than 30 feet above the usual level, leaving Suzanne and other family members stranded at their $6.7 million property on Friday. While it is unclear whether all four of their children—Grant, Anna, John, and Thomas—were present during the incident, the governor confirmed that his family was trapped inside the home and had to be rescued.
“By the grace of God, my family was safe. I have to say there were moments when they weren’t. They ended up being safe during the day,” Youngkin said. At the time, he was in Virginia attending Fourth of July events, while his family was staying at the 650-acre property.
Youngkin recounted how Texas rescue officials contacted him urgently, offering to airlift his family from the flood area. However, he declined the offer after learning that his family was safe. Instead, he urged the rescuers to focus on helping others who were still in danger.
“I said no. I’ve talked to them, my family is safe, please go rescue these young campers from these places, and when everyone else has been attended to, like other people that are safe but stranded, we will deal with my family,” he explained.
The Youngkin family purchased the property in 2010, which was once the site of Camp Arrowhead, a private girls’ camp where Suzanne spent her summers as a child. The couple visits the Hunt property several times a year, according to reports.
The devastating impact of the floods extended beyond the Youngkin family. Camp Arrowhead, which had faced financial difficulties, was eventually bought by Suzanne and transformed into a ranch for her family. The original camp relocated to another part of the river, renaming itself Camp Honey Creek. After the floods, Camp Honey Creek announced that all its campers had been safely evacuated.
However, not all camps were so fortunate. Camp Mystic, a Christian girls’ camp located about 10 miles away, suffered a tragic loss. The camp confirmed that 27 campers and counselors lost their lives in the floods. The director of Camp Mystic, Richard ‘Dick’ Eastland, 70, died while trying to save girls as a month’s worth of rain fell in a matter of minutes.
Survivors from Camp Mystic were evacuated, with cabins full of girls holding onto a rope strung by rescuers as they crossed a bridge through waist-deep water. Approximately 750 girls were at the camp when the disaster struck.
The death toll from the catastrophic natural disaster has reached 119 across six counties, with at least 173 people still missing. Kerr County was particularly hard-hit, with 59 adults and 36 children killed in the area.
As search teams continue their efforts to find survivors and recover bodies, hope is fading with each passing day. Texas Governor Greg Abbott has vowed that the search will not end until “every missing person is accounted for.” The tragedy has left a deep emotional impact on the community, with many mourning the loss of life and the destruction caused by the relentless floods.
