US President Donald Trump on Friday toured flood-ravaged central Texas, where catastrophic flash floods have killed at least 120 people- including 36 children- and left over 170 missing. Speaking at a roundtable with first responders in hard-hit Kerrville, Trump called the devastation “like nothing I've ever seen” and pledged federal support as search efforts entered their eighth day.
“This is a tough one. I've never seen anything like this,” Trump said at the meeting with local officials and first responders in Kerr County, which bore the brunt of the disaster. “I've gone to a lot of hurricanes, a lot of tornadoes. I've never seen anything like this. This is a bad one.”
Accompanied by First Lady Melania Trump and Texas Governor Greg Abbott, the president arrived in Kerrville — the heart of the flood zone — earlier in the day. He was briefed near the banks of the Guadalupe River, where homes, camps, and cars were swept away in a surge of water on July 4.
Wearing a white “USA” cap, Trump met grieving families, rescue workers, and Coast Guard members. “I had to be here as president. The First Lady wanted to be here,” he said. Melania, dressed in olive pants, a khaki jacket, and Converse sneakers, was seen greeting volunteers and posing for photos.
“All across the country, Americans' hearts are shattered,” the president added, speaking beside a table draped with a black banner that read “Texas Strong.”
At least 27 of the dead were at Camp Mystic, a girls’ summer retreat along the river. Officials fear the toll could rise further, with dozens of children still unaccounted for.
Later on Friday (Local time), Trump is scheduled to conduct an aerial survey of the region aboard Marine One to assess the full extent of the damage- particularly along the Guadalupe River, which forecasters say surged by more than 20 feet in hours.
Trump compared the floodwaters to a “giant wave in the Pacific Ocean that the best surfers in the world would be afraid to surf,” underscoring how quickly the situation escalated.
The disaster has sparked scrutiny of the emergency response, with reports emerging of delayed evacuation alerts in key areas. ABC News reported that flood warnings sent through Kerr County’s CodeRED system were delayed by up to six hours, reaching some residents only after homes had been washed away.
Trump, however, dismissed criticism about the government’s preparedness or funding cuts. “The local officials were hit by this just like everybody else,” he told NBC News on Thursday, reiterating that the floods were a “100-year catastrophe” that “nobody expected.”
Still, his administration faces questions over the future of FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency), which responded to the disaster after Trump signed a federal disaster declaration over the weekend. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who joined Trump in Texas, has defended the response as “swift and efficient” — but has also advocated for phasing out FEMA in favor of devolving disaster management to states.
At a government review meeting Wednesday, Noem said FEMA should be “eliminated” in its current form. Trump has so far avoided publicly addressing FEMA’s long-term role, though he has voiced support for expanding local flood warning systems.
Kerr County Commissioner Jeff Holt, who also serves in the fire department, said the president’s visit sent a vital message. “He’s here to pledge federal support, like he already has with FEMA. That’s what a leader does,” Holt told reporters.
“This is a tough one. I've never seen anything like this,” Trump said at the meeting with local officials and first responders in Kerr County, which bore the brunt of the disaster. “I've gone to a lot of hurricanes, a lot of tornadoes. I've never seen anything like this. This is a bad one.”
Accompanied by First Lady Melania Trump and Texas Governor Greg Abbott, the president arrived in Kerrville — the heart of the flood zone — earlier in the day. He was briefed near the banks of the Guadalupe River, where homes, camps, and cars were swept away in a surge of water on July 4.
Wearing a white “USA” cap, Trump met grieving families, rescue workers, and Coast Guard members. “I had to be here as president. The First Lady wanted to be here,” he said. Melania, dressed in olive pants, a khaki jacket, and Converse sneakers, was seen greeting volunteers and posing for photos.
“All across the country, Americans' hearts are shattered,” the president added, speaking beside a table draped with a black banner that read “Texas Strong.”
At least 27 of the dead were at Camp Mystic, a girls’ summer retreat along the river. Officials fear the toll could rise further, with dozens of children still unaccounted for.
Later on Friday (Local time), Trump is scheduled to conduct an aerial survey of the region aboard Marine One to assess the full extent of the damage- particularly along the Guadalupe River, which forecasters say surged by more than 20 feet in hours.
Trump compared the floodwaters to a “giant wave in the Pacific Ocean that the best surfers in the world would be afraid to surf,” underscoring how quickly the situation escalated.
The disaster has sparked scrutiny of the emergency response, with reports emerging of delayed evacuation alerts in key areas. ABC News reported that flood warnings sent through Kerr County’s CodeRED system were delayed by up to six hours, reaching some residents only after homes had been washed away.
Trump, however, dismissed criticism about the government’s preparedness or funding cuts. “The local officials were hit by this just like everybody else,” he told NBC News on Thursday, reiterating that the floods were a “100-year catastrophe” that “nobody expected.”
Still, his administration faces questions over the future of FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency), which responded to the disaster after Trump signed a federal disaster declaration over the weekend. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who joined Trump in Texas, has defended the response as “swift and efficient” — but has also advocated for phasing out FEMA in favor of devolving disaster management to states.
At a government review meeting Wednesday, Noem said FEMA should be “eliminated” in its current form. Trump has so far avoided publicly addressing FEMA’s long-term role, though he has voiced support for expanding local flood warning systems.
Kerr County Commissioner Jeff Holt, who also serves in the fire department, said the president’s visit sent a vital message. “He’s here to pledge federal support, like he already has with FEMA. That’s what a leader does,” Holt told reporters.
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