Parents urge Texas committee to block Camp Mystic reopening after July 4 flood

AUSTIN, Texas — Grief and anger from last year’s deadly July 4 flooding at Camp Mystic filled the Texas Capitol on Tuesday night, as parents urged state lawmakers to keep the camp from reopening and to deny renewal of its license.

The parents spoke during the second day of an investigative hearing before the General Investigative Committee, offering their perspectives on the future of Camp Mystic. The Eastland family, which runs the camp, was seated nearby.

“A daycare, with 27 dead children, and this evidence already on record, would have already been closed,” said Bolton Walters, a parent of a victim camper.

CiCi Steward, the mother of a missing Camp Mystic camper, told lawmakers, “No camp will be safe for any child as long as the Eastlands are associated with it.”

Parents recounted the trauma of the flooding that killed 27 campers and counselors. Malorie Lytal, a parent of a victim camper, described what happened to her child: “As her cabin filled with flood waters, she was left to fend for herself, and washed miles downriver to die the most horrific, gruesome death.”

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Steward called on the state not to renew the camp’s license.

“Camp Mystics’ license should not be renewed. If a child dies in a Texas camp this summer, it will not be because we lack the information to prevent it,” she said. “Those lies of safety, preparedness, and readiness cause the greatest mass casualty event involving children in the history of the state.”

Camp Mystic is hoping to reopen on May 30 at their Cypress location.

Last week, the Texas Department of State Health Services found 22 deficiencies in the emergency plan camp leaders submitted. The findings included gaps in the camp’s flood evacuation procedures and failure to submit a required floodplain map to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA.

Texas Division of Emergency Management Chief Nim Kidd said camps need emergency plans that are formalized and coordinated with local authorities.

“It’s got to be written. It’s got to be trained. It’s got to be exercised. It’s got to be funded. It’s not a one-and-done. It’s not a destination, it’s a journey,” Kidd said.

Even with plans to reopen at the Cypress location, parents remained skeptical that the camp could operate safely under its current leadership. Julie Marshall, a parent of a victim camper, said, “The Eastland’s prayers didn’t save the girls that night. I worry the Eastland’s prayers going forward are not an appropriate safety plan.”

At the end of the hearing, Texas DSHS said they are actively implementing legislation for youth camp safety, and will not be approving any camp’s licenses if they do not have an acceptable emergency management plan.