The 14-year-old was away on a smaller arm of the Guadalupe River, a short distance away from the devastated Camp Mystic
NEED TO KNOW
- Brooklyn and Bailey McKnight’s little sister Paisley was at summer camp in Central Texas when extreme rainfall on July 4 spurred devastating floodwaters in the area
- The 14-year-old’s camp is situated on the Guadalupe River, not far from Camp Mystic in Hunt, Texas. As her mother, Mindy, explained on social media, Paisley was able to sequester in cabins on higher ground to remain safe amid the floods
- The disaster’s death toll has increased to over 100 fatalities, per the Associated Press. CNN reported that 10 Camp Mystic campers and one counselor are still missing
Brooklyn and Bailey McKnight‘s little sister Paisley has returned safely from her summer camp in Texas amid the deadly flooding that has devastated the area.
This week, the influencers’ mom Mindy McKnight took to social media to share updates about Paisley’s situation. In a since-expired post, Mindy explained that the 14-year-old’s camp is situated “just miles” away from Camp Mystic, which has been tragically impacted by the floodwaters.
Nearly unprecedented rainfall on Friday, July 4, caused the Guadalupe River to swell, and the death toll has steadily increased in the days since. It now sits at over 100 fatalities, Associated Press reported. 10 Camp Mystic campers and one counselor are still missing, said Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha, per CNN.
Mindy stated that Paisley and her fellow campers were “sequestered to their cabins during all the flooding,” per reposted screenshots from since-expired Instagram Stories. Her camp is located on higher ground and sits on a “smaller arm” of the Guadalupe River. Mindy said everyone at Paisley’s camp is “safe and all accounted for.”
“They don’t have WiFi or power and we don’t know what the coming days will bring with most of the roads washed out or damaged around them,” said Mindy.
Later, the mom of six posted a video update — a screen-recording of which was reposted on TikTok — confirming that Paisley and her camp were still safe, but it was too risky for parents to pick up their kids at the actual site. Luckily, however, Mindy learned that her teenager was able to secure “an extra seat on a plane that another parent had chartered” to fly out of Dallas, retrieve some of the campers, and return to Dallas.
“We made the very quick, last second decision to get her on the plane because we thought we could get her home sooner,” Mindy shared. “We have been working all day to coordinate this parent picking her up and the plane and getting all of her stuff and getting all the buses from the camp to the location where we had to pick her up. It’s been crazy.”
In Instagram Stories also reposted on TikTok, Mindy added her thanks to everyone who checked in on the family and sent thoughtful messages. She said Paisley is doing well, but “has moments that still shake her” following the evacuation. Now that she’s back home, Mindy says her daughter has recounted her extreme experience on the campgrounds.
“Paisley described no power, helicopters bringing their only drinkable water, being scared during the storms, leaking roofs, toilets that wouldn’t work, and being kept in the cabins for safety,” Mindy wrote in a social media post.
Paisley was also unaware of the fatalities and general extent of the flood’s damage until she and her camp group were able to leave their cabins on higher ground. She then observed the destruction in her camp’s lower campus and throughout the Hunt and Kerrville area, as Mindy explained.
“She described overturned cars, trees down, canoes wrapped around the tops of trees) debris, missing walls, and other difficult sights. One of her campmates is missing several family members that were still in the area camping,” Mindy added.
