Texas flooding: Kerrville residents search for missing in hopes of bringing closure to families

Kerr County search efforts amidst tragic Texas flooding

Kerrville is staying strong in the midst of this tragedy. The visual of what the small community now looks like is leaving many at a loss for words. Fox4's Payton May spoke with families who live near the Guadalupe River and has a look at massive devastation in the area.

KERRVILLE, Texas - Kerrville families are cleaning up the damage left behind by the devastating flooding over the holiday weekend.

Most of the damage in Kerrville is along the banks of the Guadalupe River, where trees are uprooted and debris is scattered.

Kerrville family on flood damage

Crystal and Joe Spiegler live right near the water of the Guadalupe.

For the last few days, they've been searching the area, fearful of finding one of the many missing people who were killed in high flood water.

They have not found any of the missing, but the Spieglers have come across piles and piles of personal items that have washed downstream.

What they're saying:

"I don't want to find someone like that, but it will help the family, it will give them closure so they're not going, 'where's my mom or my dad or my daughter?'" said Crystal Spiegler.

With their hometown torn apart, the Spiegler's primary goal is to lift others up.

"We're very community-driven. If anything happens, whether it's something like this or someone's house catches on fire, everybody tries to take care of each other. It's a small time feel that doesn't really exist anywhere anymore," Crystal said.

The backstory:

Heavy rains caused floodwaters along the Guadalupe River to quickly rise on Friday, July 4.

As of Monday morning, Kerr County officials confirmed 75 deaths in Kerr County, including 48 adults and 27 children.

Officials say they do not know how many people are missing, in part because so many people were visiting due to the holiday.

How you can help

What you can do:

You can join FOX in supporting the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country’s Kerr County Flood Relief Fund, which will help provide relief to communities and with rebuilding efforts. 

LINK: Click here for the site to make a donation.