AUSTIN, Texas – Camp Mystic counselors were not trained in emergency management procedures and unable to communicate with others during the deadly Hill Country floods, an investigator testified during the first public hearing on Monday.
Criminal Attorney Casey Garrett testified to lawmakers that the owners of Camp Mystic, the Eastland family, knew how flood-prone the campgrounds were, and that ownership had created a culture that celebrated flooding.
“It was novel,” Garrett said. “I’m not trying to be negative about this, but it became a very complacent sort of flood culture at Camp Mystic.”
Former camp director Dick Eastland sent an email to members of his family and others discussing other historic floods.
“We’ve been here for some critical big floods, including 1978, 1984, 2000 and many others,” Dick Eastland said in the email.
“This reflects a knowledge by the Eastlands of how flood-prone this area is,” Garrett said.
Because of this, Garrett testified that campers were taught to enjoy the rain, citing an Instagram post from the camp’s page.
KSAT has not independently verified the screenshot shared, as the Instagram account appears to have been deleted after the hearing.
Campers who spoke to Garrett said they enjoyed when the land bridge would flood because they “could stay in our cabins and have food delivered by boat.”
Investigation finds lack of counselors, preparation, communication
In years past, at least three college-aged counselors would be in cabins at Camp Mystic. During the July 4 floods, Garrett said some cabins only had two.
While counselors were told to follow instructions posted inside each building in the event of an emergency, Garrett said none of them went through any training to prepare for dangerous situations.
“Every single person that I’ve spoken with that are former (and) current counselors, said there was never real training,” Garrett said, “no drills of any kind.”
According to the camp’s instructions, in the event of an emergency, campers on Senior Hill were to stay in their cabins.
The camp said instructions would be given through the loudspeaker, and communication would take place through walkie-talkies if electricity were to go out.
However, Garrett testified that counselors did not have walkie-talkies, radios or phones, calling the communication a “failure.”
“If we are allowing an 8-year-old to be in custody of adults who are being paid to take care of them, I wonder if we’re holding them to the same level of accountability of daycare facilities,” Sen. Menéndez said. “I’m not sure if we do.”
Garrett said that Camp Mystic’s emergency plan did not meet requirements from the state code at the time of the flood last July, including:
- The plan addressed disasters and serious accidents, but failed to cover epidemics or fatalities.
- The plan addressed emergency shelter, but not evacuation in case of a flood.
- Campers were not instructed
- Staff and counselors were given no specific assignments
- No documentation of training was present because inadequate training was given
Scope of investigation limited to Camp Mystic, not floods as a whole
Garrett’s testimony reflected the findings of her investigation of flood response, preparedness and emergency planning failures at Camp Mystic.
State Sen. José Menéndez (D-San Antonio) confirmed last week that the scope of the Senate General Investigating Committee on the July 2025 Flooding Events, of which he is a part, and the investigation presented Monday were focused on Camp Mystic.
“It’s limited to Camp Mystic because of the fact that they’re applying to reopen,” Menéndez told KSAT last week.
Camp Mystic is currently seeking approval to reopen this summer, and members of the Eastland family testified about conditions leading up to the flooding and the camp’s emergency preparedness.
However, last week the camp was given 45 days to correct its emergency plans after the Texas Department of State Health Services found deficiencies across 22 separate categories in its current safety procedures.
Monday was the first open meeting of the joint legislative committees tasked with investigating the disaster and its aftermath, according to reporting from The Texas Tribune.
Lawmakers are expected to hear additional testimony on Tuesday as they examine how state and local systems responded during the flooding and whether warning and evacuation protocols were sufficient.