The Texas Hill Country has been notorious for flash floods caused by the Guadalupe River. Here's why the area is called "Flash Flood Alley."

The Guadalupe River has risen to catastrophic levels in the same area three times in the past century, impacting camps and campers each time.

At least 161 are still unaccounted for after the July Fourth floods that saw the waters of the Guadalupe rise to historic levels in Central Texas, officials with Kerr County said Friday. Authorities have confirmed 103 deaths, 36 of whom are children.

Maps show how heavy rainfall and rocky terrain helped create the devastating Texas floods that have killed more than 120 people.

As search and rescue efforts continue in response to the “catastrophic” and deadly flooding of the Guadalupe River in Kerr County on Friday morning,

The Guadalupe River has a history of deadly flooding. Here is a look over the decades. (AP video Marshall Ritzel/Albee Zhang)

Teens at the Pot O’ Gold Christian Camp near Comfort, Texas, were swamped by a wall of water as they tried to escape.

The Guadalupe River, winding through the scenic Texas Hill Country, has a hidden danger that struck with devastating force in July 2025. Heavy rains caused the river to surge, leading to one of the deadliest floods in recent history.

The record of frequent, often deadly floods in Central Texas goes back more than 200 years to July 1819, when floodwaters spilled into the major plazas of San Antonio. That city on the edge of the Hill Country was hit by major floods again in 1913, 1921, 1998 and 2025, to cite a few examples.

In the week since the flood, generations of Mystic Girls are turning to each other. They are seeking the familiar that takes them back to camp.

When storms roll in, water rushes downhill fast, gaining speed and force as it moves — often with deadly results.

The flash floods that killed at least 100 people in central Texas last week is only the latest Guadalupe River disaster to claim lives.