8-Year-Old Girl Confirmed Dead, Grandparents and Family of 4 Still Missing After Texas Flooding Tragedy

It was supposed to be a summer full of joy—canoes on calm waters, bunk beds with best friends, and late-night giggles under Texas stars. But what started as a cherished week at camp turned into a nightmare that families are still waking up to.

When the skies opened over Texas Hill Country on July 4, it wasn’t a gentle rain that fell—it was a furious downpour. In an instant, calm turned to chaos. The Guadalupe River, once a quiet backdrop for laughter and summer memories, transformed into a violent, surging force no one was prepared for.

By the time the sun rose the next day, the landscape had changed forever. Homes were gone. Roads disappeared. Families shattered.

One of the names now etched in heartbreak is Renee Smajstrla. Just eight years old, Renee had been staying at Camp Mystic, a Christian girls’ camp nestled along the riverbank. A place meant to nurture joy and faith turned into the epicenter of loss. Her family had hoped—prayed—for a miracle. But on Saturday, her uncle confirmed what they feared most: Renee didn’t make it.

Shawn Salta, her uncle, shared his grief with the world in a post that no family should ever have to write.

“They found Renee,” he wrote beside a glowing photo of her beaming with joy at camp. “It’s not the ending we hoped for, but we take comfort in knowing she was with her friends, truly living her best life.”

“Please continue holding in your hearts the families still hoping and waiting for their loved ones to return.”

That “others” includes entire families. People who were just enjoying a long weekend, never expecting it to be their last.

Joni Kay Brake and Robert Leroy Brake Sr., grandparents who had come to visit their son at a peaceful RV park by the river, are still missing. They had spent their final known moments fishing, soaking up the quiet beauty of a July evening. Now their grandchildren wait by the phone, clinging to hope.

“We’re all hoping for the best and praying big at this point,” said granddaughter Brianna Newton. “We’re putting it in God’s hands.”

The Zunker family—Reece, Paula, and their two young children—were vacationing near Hunt, Texas. What was meant to be a holiday escape turned tragic. No one has heard from them since the floodwaters surged.

At Camp Mystic, the floodwaters showed no mercy. Cabins that once echoed with laughter were torn from their foundations, carried off like driftwood in the raging current. In the chaos, more than a dozen young campers went missing. Helicopters swarmed the sky, and rescue teams worked relentlessly—saving 237 people in just one day, many lifted to safety by air. But for some, the help they desperately needed came just moments too late.

Officials now say the flooding may have reached a once-in-a-lifetime level, fueled by over 10 inches of rainfall in just hours. The National Weather Service didn’t see it coming—not like this.

“That kind of rainfall wasn’t in any forecast,” said Texas Emergency Chief Nim Kidd. “But the moment the rain began, we sprang into action—quickly and with full force.”

And yet, for some families, fast wasn’t fast enough.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott vowed continued support, deploying more resources across Kerrville, Ingram, Hunt, and beyond. But even the strongest crews can’t undo what’s already been lost.

When disasters strike, we often think of numbers. One here. Four missing there. But these aren’t numbers. They’re people. Children. Grandparents. Young parents just trying to make summer memories.

Renee was one of them. Just a little girl with pigtails and a glowing smile. She was laughing with her friends, soaking in the magic of being eight. She didn’t know that the river would rise, or that her time would be cut short.

But maybe that’s the part that lingers the most—how full her heart was in those final hours. No fear. Just joy.

So many families are still waiting for answers. Waiting to hug someone again. Or say goodbye.

As we hold them in our thoughts, let’s not forget the fragility of the moments we so easily take for granted.

Because one day, you’re fishing by the river.

The next, the river takes everything.

Source: people