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Floor Speech

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Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, it is with profound sadness that I am here with my colleague Senator Cruz to discuss the heartbreaking results of the catastrophic floods that occurred in our State, in Central Texas, over the Fourth of July weekend.

As most Texans were sleeping on the morning of July 4, a 100-year flood event caused the waters of the Guadalupe River to rise an astonishing 26 feet in 45 minutes. The loss of life was horrific. One media account said the flow rate of the Guadalupe River went from that of a small stream that you could wade across, at about 10 cubic feet per second, to a raging and destructive torrent of 120,000 cubic feet per second--an amount greater than the average flow rate across Niagara Falls.

We know that the loss of life was not confined to Kerr County, where Kerrville is located, but extended to other counties in Central Texas: Travis County, which is where Austin is located; Williamson County, just north of that; and Burnet County as well.

Of course, some here in the Nation's Capital and elsewhere are asking: How could this happen, and what, if anything, could we possibly do to prevent a recurrence? We can and we should try to answer those questions but not now. Now we need to focus on recovery efforts that are currently underway and to pray for and to think about the families that are grieving and those whose loved ones are still missing and unaccounted for. For now, I want to focus our attention on the victims and the heroes of this horrible tragedy.

More than 100 people died in Central Texas from this flooding, including 27 young campers--young girls mostly--ranging down to the age of 8 years old, as well as counselors at Camp Mystic, which we have heard so much about, a Christian girls summer camp.

This is a picture of Camp Mystic that I took from a department of public safety helicopter on Saturday morning. It is hard to see, but this is what it looked like from the air.

Ten campers and one counselor are still missing and remain unaccounted for in Kerr County.

As you can imagine, this is a sad time for Texas, and it has brought the Lone Star State to our knees in grief and in prayer. And I am glad to say I have heard so much--and I am sure my colleague has as well-- from friends and associates all around the United States sharing their condolences and concerns about what has happened over this last weekend.

While I was in Kerrville this last Saturday, I participated in an aerial tour, as I mentioned, and a car tour of the flooded areas. The damage I witnessed was nothing short of devastating, and this photo shows just some of the destruction that I witnessed there on the ground.

Bridges were washed out. Roads were destroyed. Entire homes were washed down the river. Trees were uprooted, and cars and other wreckage lodged nearly 30 feet up in the air in the trees.

I joined U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Noem, who was there representing the Trump administration, Governor Abbott and Representative Chip Roy--his district is where this incident is located--and other community leaders for a briefing and a press conference to discuss the combined government response to this disaster from Washington, DC, to the State to local officials.

During this briefing, Governor Abbott described people clinging to trees to save their lives. And I am sure by now, we have seen photos that are circulating on social media that show exactly that--people washed miles down the river, only to be lodged in the trees for extended periods of time, hoping and praying that someone would come to their aid.

I am beyond grateful to the efforts of Governor Abbott, President Trump, and Secretary Noem for their quick response in approving a Federal disaster declaration and ensuring that every available resource is being put forward in the rescue and recovery efforts throughout central Texas.

President Trump and Secretary Noem have been great partners, and I especially appreciate the efforts of the U.S. Coast Guard and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Secretary Noem reminded us all that the number one priority is people. So while there is a lot of damaged property--as you can see-- and destruction, damaged public infrastructure, first and foremost, we are united in working around the clock to ensure that as many people as possible are safe and, if possible, reunited with their families.

These rescue efforts at all levels of government have saved the lives of more than 850 people. Now, Texans are known for their tough spirit and their resilience. And this is not the first natural disaster that we have experienced, nor will it be our last. We know how to roll up our sleeves and do what is required to help those in need.

As a father of two daughters myself, my heart breaks for all those who are grieving and especially those who are holding out hope that somehow, someway their loved one may still be found.

On the aerial tour we took over Camp Mystic, many thousands of young girls made friends and grew in their faith and learned important life lessons along the banks of the Guadalupe River, a particularly beautiful and scenic part of our great State. They have done that for nearly a century of this camp's existence.

Now, I cannot imagine what many of these families are going through now as they mourn the loss of 27 of these young campers as well as their adult counselors.

While we try to wrap our heads around this heart-wrenching disaster, we can find some solace, some encouragement in the bravery exhibited by the heroes, some of whom died, helping save these young girls.

Among these is Dick Eastland, who was the director of Camp Mystic with his wife for many decades. Dick died while trying to save the lives of his young campers. Dick's grandson George Eastland described his grandfather as a hero, saying in a post on social media:

Although I am devastated, I can't say I'm surprised. [I'm not surprised] that you sacrificed your life with the hopes of someone else's being saved.

Another young man Julian Ryan lost his life while helping his own family, including a 13-month-old and a 6-year-old, escape from their trailer home as it was being washed away. While he put his two small children on top of a mattress to safely float, he attempted to break a window, cutting an artery in his arm that bled profusely. He was unconscious before help could arrive, but he died shortly thereafter, making sure that his family would live.

His sister said:

He didn't die in vain . . . He died a hero.

These words could not be more true of Julian and of all those whose names and stories we don't even know, who selflessly gave their lives so that others might live.

After another tragedy up I-35 in the small city of West, TX, where Senator Cruz and I were a little over a decade ago, I remember a county commissioner after the loss of many lives in an unexpected explosion there who said:

Being a Texan doesn't describe where you're from, it describes who your family is.

And that stuck with me and still sticks with me today because when things happen like this, as they invariably do, we all come together as a family.

In the midst of such horrific tragedy, we can find hope and strength in the stories of those who gave their all to help their fellow Texans and the first responders who miraculously saved 850 lives in high-water rescues.

One of those Coast Guard responders was a young man named Scott Ruskan, a rescue swimmer with the U.S. Coast Guard, who singlehandedly saved nearly 170 people. He helped shuttle young girls from the wreckage to the helicopters that brought them to safety, often carrying two of them in one arm. Scott and people like him are true American heroes.

First responders like him embody the spirit of patriotism and love and selfless sacrifice and service to their fellow Americans. The great courage shown by men and women like Scott, Julian, Dick, and others brings to mind the words of President Reagan back in 1981 during a Medal of Honor speech honoring Texas MSG Roy Benavidez for his heroism and courage during the Vietnam war. President Reagan said of the brave prisoners of war returning home--he asked:

Where did we find such men? We find them where we've always found them, in our villages and towns, on our city streets, in our shops, and on our farms.

So as Texans, we are all united in offering our prayers and support for all of the families who have lost loved ones and for those who still remain unaccounted for. My wife Sandy and I will especially keep the parents grieving the loss of their precious children in our prayers.

Mr. President, I would now invite the Senate to observe a moment of silence in honor of the flooding victims, their families, all who died, suffered injuries, who are still unaccounted for after these terrible floods.

(Moment of silence.)

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Mr. CORNYN. Thank you. Mr. President, I yield to my colleague from Texas Senator Cruz.

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