Virginia first responders, nonprofit aiding with disaster relief in deadly Texas floods

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WRIC) — First responders and nonprofit volunteers from Virginia are on the ground in Central Texas, helping communities recover after catastrophic flash flooding left more than 100 people dead and dozens still missing.

Virginia Task Force Four teams based in Bristol and Virginia Beach are supporting search and rescue efforts in Kerr County, one of the areas hardest hit by floods. The crews are stationed near Camp Mystic, the Christian girls summer camp where 27 children died.

“They’re really expecting to do whatever is asked of them tomorrow and over the next several days,” said Bristol Fire Chief, Mike Armstrong. “That can be anything from search and rescue operations, recovery operations or, you know, maybe even both.”

Battalion Chief Jeff Smith is leading the swift water rescue crew from the Virginia Beach Fire Department. He spoke with 8News shortly after arriving in Kerrville, and described widespread destruction in the region.

“There’s significant damage,” Smith said. “You could tell there was a mass of water that very quickly moved downstream and did a lot of destruction to the shoreline, the trees, some of the homes along that route.”

Damage along the Guadalupe River from recent flooding. (Photo: Mercy Chefs)

Damage along the Guadalupe River from recent flooding. (Photo: Mercy Chefs)

Virginia-based nonprofit Mercy Chefs began providing relief within 24 hours of the storm, serving hot meals to first responders and displaced families. As of Tuesday, July 8, the group had delivered more than 10,000 meals.

“We’ve been able to bless this community with so much Mercy Chefs love from Virginia,” said Amy Avery, a spokesperson for the organization. “One of our chefs even had a connection to Camp Mystic — she was a counselor there for several summers. So it’s really impacted our team."

Both rescue teams say they expect to stay in Texas for at least two weeks but are prepared to extend their deployment as needed.

“Please say a prayer for those folks in Texas,” Armstrong said. “Also say a prayer for all these first responders that are down there risking their lives to try to make it a little bit better.”

Mercy Chefs continues to partner with local volunteers in Texas. If you’d like to donate or know someone in the area who wants to help, click here for more information.