{"id":30132,"date":"2025-07-07T16:11:18","date_gmt":"2025-07-07T16:11:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/?p=30132"},"modified":"2025-07-07T16:11:18","modified_gmt":"2025-07-07T16:11:18","slug":"camp-mystic-director-is-killed-during-biblical-texas-flooding-while-trying-to-save-girls-daily-mail-online","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/?p=30132","title":{"rendered":"Camp Mystic director is killed during biblical Texas flooding while trying to save girls | Daily Mail Online"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><!-- ad: https:\/\/mads.dailymail.co.uk\/v8\/us\/news\/none\/article\/other\/billboard.html --><\/p>\n<div id=\"mini-carousel-wrapper\" class=\"item news\" data-track-module=\"am-mini_carousel^mini_carousel\" data-track-selector=\".rotator-panels a\" data-track-pos=\"static\">\n<div class=\"shallow-ac mini\">\n<div class=\"rotator\">\n<div class=\"rotator-pages\">\n<div class=\"rotator-next\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"taboola-top-carousel-thumbnails\" class=\"taboola\" data-taboolaposition=\"beforeArticle\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"articleWide cleared\">\n<div class=\"alpha\">\n<div id=\"js-article-text\" class=\"article-text wide  heading-tag-switch\">\n<h1>Camp Mystic director is killed during biblical Texas flooding while trying to save girls<\/h1>\n<p><!-- ad: https:\/\/mads.dailymail.co.uk\/v8\/us\/news\/none\/article\/other\/para_top.html --><\/p>\n<div class=\"adHolder column-content cleared\">\n<div id=\"para_top\" style=\"width: 638px; margin: 0 auto;\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><!-- CWV --><!-- [if !IE]><!--> <!--<![endif]--> <!-- [if IE]>\n \t<link href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/static\/gunther\/1.17.0\/registration--.css\" media=\"screen\" rel=\"stylesheet\" type=\"text\/css\" \/>\n<![endif]--> <!-- [if !IE]><!--> <!--<![endif]--><!-- [if IE]>\n \t<link href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/static\/gunther\/1.17.0\/all-ie8-9--.css\" media=\"all\" rel=\"stylesheet\" type=\"text\/css\" \/>\n \t<link href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/static\/gunther\/1.17.0\/all1-ie8-9--.css\" media=\"all\" rel=\"stylesheet\" type=\"text\/css\" \/>\n<![endif]--> <!-- [if !IE]><!--> <!--<![endif]--> <!-- [if IE 8]>\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/static\/mol-fe\/static\/mol-fe-polyfill\/1.0.2\/ie8.js\"><\/script>\n<![endif]--> <!-- [if IE 9]>\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/static\/mol-fe\/static\/mol-fe-polyfill\/1.0.2\/ie9.js\"><\/script>\n<![endif]--> <!-- [if IE]>\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/static\/gunther\/1.17.0\/sync_bundle--.js\"><\/script>\n<![endif]--> <!-- [if !IE]> --> <!--<![endif]--><!-- SiteCatalyst code version: H.20.3.\n    Copyright 1997-2009 Omniture, Inc. More info available at\n    http:\/\/www.omniture.com --> <!-- End SiteCatalyst code version: H.20.3. --> <!-- [if IE]>\n<script>\n  (function (src, d, tag){\n    var s = d.createElement(tag), prev = d.getElementsByTagName(tag)[0];\n    s.src = src;\n    prev.parentNode.insertBefore(s, prev);\n    }(\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/static\/gunther\/1.17.0\/async_bundle--.js\", document, \"script\"));<\/script>\n<![endif]--> <!-- [if !IE]> --> <!--<![endif]--><!-- [if IE]>\n  <script>\n    DM.loadCSS(\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/static\/gunther\/gunther-2159\/video_bundle--.css\");\n  <\/script>\n  <noscript> \t<link rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/static\/gunther\/gunther-2159\/video_bundle--.css\"><\/noscript>\n  <script defer src=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/static\/gunther\/gunther-2159\/video_bundle--.js\"><\/script>\n<![endif]--> <!-- [if !IE]> --><noscript> \t<link rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/static\/videoplayer\/7.11.1\/styles\/mol-fe-videoplayer.min.css\"><\/noscript><!-- <![endif]--> <!-- CWV --><\/p>\n<div>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">The director of Camp Mystic was killed while trying to save girls from the horrific flooding that swept through the <a id=\"mol-a3b9c660-5a75-11f0-9738-ad31bf1b924a\" style=\"font-weight: bold;\" href=\"\/news\/texas\/index.html\" target=\"_self\">Texas<\/a>\u00a0summer camp.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Richard &#8216;Dick&#8217; Eastland, 70, died while trying to <a class=\"class\" style=\"font-weight: bold;\" href=\"\/news\/article-14879619\/texas-floods-map-camp-mystic-live-updates.html\" target=\"_self\">rescue campers<\/a> from the biblical rushing waters that struck the state on July 4.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">At least 11 girls and one counselor are <a class=\"class\" style=\"font-weight: bold;\" href=\"\/news\/article-14877783\/camp-girl-clinging-tree-texas-floods-death-toll.html\" target=\"_self\">missing from Camp Mystic<\/a> in Hunt, Texas, and five of their fellow campers have died after the rushing waters destroyed the all-girls private Christian summer camp.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">The death toll has risen to at least 69 people, including 21 children after the Guadalupe River flooded and surged by up to<a class=\"class\" style=\"font-weight: bold;\" href=\"\/news\/article-14879825\/texas-flood-death-toll-family-members-kerrville-id-bodies.html\" target=\"_self\"> 30 feet above its usual water level Friday.<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Eastland&#8217;s nephew, Gardner Eastland, confirmed the death in a <a id=\"mol-a3b580a0-5a75-11f0-9738-ad31bf1b924a\" style=\"font-weight: bold;\" href=\"\/sciencetech\/facebook\/index.html\" target=\"_self\">Facebook<\/a> post on Saturday. The camp director&#8217;s wife, Tweety, was found safe at their home, according to <a class=\"class\" style=\"font-weight: bold;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tpr.org\/news\/2025-07-05\/guadalupe-river-flood-camp-mystic-director-among-the-dead\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Texas Public Radio<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Father-of-four Eastland died in a helicopter on the way to a Houston hospital,\u00a0Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly told the<a class=\"class\" style=\"font-weight: bold;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/nation\/2025\/07\/05\/texas-flood-victims-camp-mystic\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"> Washington Post<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">The Eastlands have owned and operated Camp Mystic since 1974, and many viewed him as a father figure at the camp.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;It doesn&#8217;t surprise me at all that his last act of kindness and sacrifice was working to save the lives of campers,&#8217; The Kerrville Daily Times<a class=\"class\" style=\"font-weight: bold;\" href=\"https:\/\/dailytimes.com\/news\/my-friend-dick-eastland-locals-mourn-loss-of-camp-mystic-s-longtime-owner-and-director\/article_799eb387-e4bf-43db-8357-5f742ab5f903.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer noopener\"> guest columnist <\/a>Paige Sumner said in a tribute to Eastland.<\/p>\n<div class=\"artSplitter mol-img-group\">\n<div class=\"mol-img\">\n<div class=\"image-wrap\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Beloved director of Camp Mystic, Richard &#8216;Dick&#8217; Eastland (pictured), 70, died while trying to save his campers<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"artSplitter mol-img-group\">\n<div class=\"mol-img\">\n<div class=\"image-wrap\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">At least 11 girls are missing from Camp Mystic in Hunt, Texas, and five of their fellow campers have died after the rushing waters destroyed the all-girls private Christian summer camp<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"artSplitter mol-img-group\">\n<div class=\"mol-img\">\n<div class=\"image-wrap\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Eastland (center) and his wife, Tweety, have owned and operated Camp Mystic since 1974, and many viewed him as a father figure at the camp<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;Dick was the father figure to all of us while we were away from home at Camp Mystic for six weeks.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;He was the father of four amazing boys, but he had hundreds of girls each term who looked up to him like a dad. I would never have taken a fishing class if it wasn\u2019t taught by my new friend Dick.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">The couple has 11 grandchildren, and several of their children and their partners help manage the camp.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">According to the camp website, the Eastland&#8217;s oldest son, Richard, manages the camp&#8217;s kitchen; their youngest son, Edward, and his wife are directors of Camp Mystic Guadalupe River.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">The couple attended the University of Texas in Austin and reside at the camp grounds.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Eastland is the third generation from his family to run the all-girls Christian summer camp since its founding in 1926.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Texas Governor Greg Abbott said Camp Mystic on the banks of the Guadalupe River, where some 750 girls had been staying when the<a class=\"class\" style=\"font-weight: bold;\" href=\"\/news\/article-14879179\/National-Weather-Service-Texas-horror-floods.html\" target=\"_self\"> floodwaters hit<\/a>, had been &#8216;horrendously ravaged in ways unlike I&#8217;ve seen in any natural disaster.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;The height the rushing water reached to the top of the cabins was shocking,&#8217; he said on X after visiting the camp on Saturday.<\/p>\n<div class=\"artSplitter mol-img-group\">\n<div class=\"mol-img\">\n<div class=\"image-wrap\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Eastland (pictured) died in a helicopter on the way to a Houston hospital, according to Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"artSplitter mol-img-group\">\n<div class=\"mol-img\">\n<div class=\"image-wrap\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">The camp was destroyed\u00a0after the Guadalupe River flooded and surged by up to 30 feet above its usual water level Friday<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"artSplitter mol-img-group mol-hidden-caption\">\n<div class=\"mol-img\">\n<div class=\"image-wrap\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"artSplitter mol-img-group\">\n<div class=\"mol-img\">\n<div class=\"image-wrap\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Eastland (right) is the third generation from his family to run the all-girls Christian summer camp since its founding in 1926<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"artSplitter mol-img-group\">\n<div class=\"mol-img\">\n<div class=\"image-wrap\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Windows in the cabins were shattered and the interiors were completely covered in mud<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Photos show the summer camp was destroyed after the deadly floodwaters wrecked the grounds.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Windows in the cabins were shattered and the interiors were completely covered in mud, with campers belongings in disarray.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">At least five campers were killed when the unprecedented current slammed the camp.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Renee Smajstrla, eight, Janie Hunt, nine, and Alabama native Sarah Marsh, 8, all perished when the camp was washed away by the flood waters.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Best friends Lila Bonner, 9, and Eloise Peck, 8, were also killed in the devastating flooding.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">The families of 11 other campers are desperately searching for their daughters as the death toll continues to rise.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Authorities were coming under scrutiny over whether the camps and residents received proper warning about the flash floods and whether enough preparations were made.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">The flooding in the middle of the night caught many residents, campers and officials by surprise.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">The National Weather Service escalated the alert to a flash flood warning at 1am Friday, then a more serious Flash Flood Emergency by 4.30am &#8211; but by this stage water was already pouring into families&#8217; homes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><!-- ad: https:\/\/mads.dailymail.co.uk\/v8\/us\/news\/none\/article\/other\/mpu_channel.html --><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Camp Mystic director is killed during biblical Texas flooding while trying to save girls &nbsp; The director of Camp Mystic was killed while trying to save girls from the horrific &hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":30133,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30132","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30132","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=30132"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30132\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":30134,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30132\/revisions\/30134"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/30133"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=30132"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=30132"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=30132"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}