Several Texas families filed lawsuits Monday against Camp Mystic, alleging gross negligence in the flash floods that killed 25 young campers, two counselors and the camp's director in July.
The lawsuits seek more than $1 million each in damages following the tragedy that occurred when torrential rain caused parts of the Guadalupe River to rise from about three feet to almost 30 feet in only 45 minutes in Hunt, Texas.
In one of the legal complaints obtained by Scripps News, the families of six children — Virginia ‘Wynne’ Naylor, Hadley Hanna, Virginia Hollis, Jane Hunt, Lucy Dillon, and Kellyanne Lytal — alleged gross negligence.
"These innocent little girls are unable to express to their parents the terror they experienced as water rose in their cabins, as they desperately tried to keep their heads above the steadily rising water, attempting to escape, and then as they were swept into raging floodwaters," the complaint said. "Their parents are left to live every single day for the rest of their lives with the intense grief and the thoughts of what their babies endured that fateful night."
In addition to including multiple photographs of the victims and their families, the legal documents contain an image that it claims was the instructions for the campers to follow in the case of a flood emergency.
The alleged "emergency instructions" told campers to remain in their cabins in case of a flood.
"To instruct children to stay in a cabin with rising flood waters was ultimately a death sentence," the lawsuit said.
Scripps News has not confirmed the authenticity of the document.
The lawsuit also alleged the defendants were negligent for:
- "operating a children’s camp in a known flood hazard area without implementing adequate flood safety and evacuation procedures.
- housing children in cabins located in the floodplain despite knowing the area’s history of catastrophic flooding.
- failing to evacuate children when flooding was imminent or underway, despite the obvious and extreme risk to their lives.
- failing to warn parents about specific and serious flood risks associated with the camp’s location; and failing to implement or follow any reasonable emergency response plan despite the known and extreme danger."
A separate lawsuit obtained by Scripps News was filed on behalf of another deceased camper named Eloise Peck.
"Camp Mystic's emergency preparedness was grossly inadequate and demonstrated a reckless disregard for camper safety," the suit alleged.
RELATED STORY | Camp Mystic passed a state inspection of its emergency procedures 2 days before flood
"We continue to pray for the grieving families and ask for God's healing and comfort," Camp Mystic said in a statement provided to Scripps News.
“We empathize with the families of the campers and counselors and all families in the Hill Country who lost loved ones in the horrific and unprecedented flood of July 4,” said Jeff Ray, legal counsel for the camp, in a written statement. “ We intend to demonstrate and prove that this sudden surge of floodwaters far exceeded any previous flood in the area by several magnitudes, that it was unexpected and that no adequate warning systems existed in the area. We disagree with several accusations and misinformation in the legal filings regarding the actions of Camp Mystic and Dick Eastland, who lost his life as well. We will thoroughly respond to these accusations in due course.”
RELATED STORY | Camp Mystic plans to reopen in Texas next summer, a year after floods killed 27
Camp Mystic previously announced it will reopen next summer with new safety protocols in place. An attorney for the camp noted that 166 girls were safely evacuated during the disaster.
