{"id":30200,"date":"2025-07-07T21:42:08","date_gmt":"2025-07-07T21:42:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/?p=30200"},"modified":"2025-07-07T21:42:08","modified_gmt":"2025-07-07T21:42:08","slug":"texas-sisters-11-and-13-send-haunting-three-word-text-message-before-drowning-as-dad-fought-to-save-them-daily-mail-online","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/?p=30200","title":{"rendered":"Texas sisters, 11 and 13, send haunting three-word text message before drowning as dad fought to save them | Daily Mail Online"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><!-- ad: https:\/\/mads.dailymail.co.uk\/v8\/us\/news\/none\/article\/other\/billboard.html --><\/p>\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>Texas sisters, 11 and 13, send haunting three-word text message before drowning as dad fought to save them<\/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\">Two young sisters killed in the deadly <a id=\"mol-ec9e3f30-5b3a-11f0-b236-67559db8b86b\" style=\"font-weight: bold;\" href=\"\/news\/texas\/index.html\" target=\"_self\">Texas<\/a> Hill Country floods sent their parents a heartbreaking final text before they drowned to death.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Blair, 13, and Brooke Harber, 11, were found dead about 12 hours after the flash floods erupted along the Guadalupe River early Friday morning.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">The sisters were with their grandparents Mike and Charlene Harber at a rented cabin along the river in Hunt when they were swept away, the family has revealed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">As the parents were desperately searching for the girls, they checked their phones and saw they each received a text from their daughters that read &#8216;I love you&#8217; at 3.30am.\u00a0The girls also sent a similar message to their grandfather in <a id=\"mol-ec993620-5b3a-11f0-b236-67559db8b86b\" style=\"font-weight: bold;\" href=\"\/news\/michigan\/index.html\" target=\"_self\">Michigan<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Their bodies were found Friday afternoon in Kerrville, about 15 miles from the cabin.\u00a0The sisters were found holding hands.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Blair and Brooke were eighth grade and sixth grade students respectively at St. Rita Catholic School in Dallas.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Mike and Charlene were in the cabin with the girls and are currently missing.<\/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\">Blair, 13, (left) and Brooke Harber, 11, (right) were found dead about 12 hours after the flash floods erupted along the Guadalupe River early Friday morning<\/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\">Pictured: Brooke and Blaire Harber (center) with their parents RJ and Annie (right) and grandparents Mike and Charlene (left)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">The young girls were staying with their grandparents in Casa Bonita cabin community near Hunt when the deadly flash floods broke out early Friday morning.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Their father RJ and mother Annie\u00a0were staying in a separate cabin nearby. The couple were woken up by the sound of rushing water early Friday morning as their cabin began to flood.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">They managed to escape the building by jumping out of a window as the water reached neck-level.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">RJ started to kayak towards the cabin where his daughters and parents were staying, but swell knocked him into a post about halfway through his journey.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">He shined a flashlight towards the cabin and saw an entire building had detached from the foundation and struck against the cabin where his family was.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;I shined a flashlight out there, and I could see it was white water, and I\u2019ve kayaked enough to know that that was gonna be impossible,&#8217; RJ told <a class=\"class\" style=\"font-weight: bold;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/us-news\/a-texas-dad-tried-to-kayak-to-his-daughters-the-girls-texted-i-love-you-99eaaaaf?mod=hp_lead_pos8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Wall Street Journal<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;There were cars floating at me and trees floating at me. I knew if I took even one stroke further, it was gonna be a death sentence.&#8217;<\/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\">Mike, 76, and Charlene Harber, 74, remain missing after the catastrophic floods swept through their cabin and killed their granddaughters<\/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\">People look through belongings on a camp trunk at Camp Mystic along the banks of the Guadalupe River after a flash flood swept through the area Sunday, July 6, 2025, in Hunt, Texas<\/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\">A view inside of a cabin at Camp Mystic, the site of where at least 20 girls went missing after flash flooding in Hunt, Texas, on July 5, 2025<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">He kayaked back towards Annie and the pair headed to higher ground with other families who managed to flee the flooded campsite.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">When they arrived at a safe spot, the couple checked their phones and saw they each received a text from their daughters that read &#8216;I love you&#8217;, timestamped at 3.30am.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">The girls also sent a similar message to their grandfather in Michigan.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Blair and Brooke&#8217;s bodies were found Friday afternoon in Kerrville, about 15 miles from the cabin.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;When they were found their hands were locked together,&#8217; a family member revealed in a crowdfunding campaign. The relative added: &#8216;They had their rosaries with them.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Their grandparents Mike, 76, and Charlene, 74, remain missing.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">A <a class=\"class\" style=\"font-weight: bold;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gofundme.com\/f\/rjrcd-support-the-harber-family-after-tragic-loss?attribution_id=sl:38fc847d-4859-4a16-bd56-222c2528f710\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer noopener\">GoFundMe<\/a> account established in the family&#8217;s honor has already raised more than $197,000, as of Monday morning.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Father Joshua J. Whitfield, the priest for the St. Rita Catholic Community, has vowed to honor the girls memory.<\/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\">Search and recovery workers dig through debris looking for any survivors or remains of people swept up in the flash flooding at Camp Mystic on July 6, 2025 in Hunt, Texas<\/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\">Widespread damage is seen in and around Kerrville, Texas, on July 6, 2025, following a deadly flash flood that causes the Guadalupe River to rise 26 feet in less than an hour on Friday<\/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\">Search teams look through vegetation and debris along the Guadalupe River in Hunt, Texas on Sunday, July 6, 2025<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;Even if we may never fully understand why such tragedies happen, we are called to respond with love, compassion, and prayer,&#8217; Whitfield told<a class=\"class\" style=\"font-weight: bold;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fox4news.com\/news\/2-st-rita-students-among-victims-deadly-central-texas-flooding-school-confirms\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer noopener\"> KDFW<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;We will honor Blair and Brooke\u2019s lives, the light they shared, and the joy they brought to everyone who knew them.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Annie is a teacher at the Catholic school her daughters attended.\u00a0The church is offering counselors to support students and faculty impacted by the tragedy.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"mobileGalleryModal\">\n<div class=\"canvas\"><\/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>Texas sisters, 11 and 13, send haunting three-word text message before drowning as dad fought to save them &nbsp; Two young sisters killed in the deadly Texas Hill Country floods &hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":30201,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30200","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\/30200","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=30200"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30200\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":30202,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30200\/revisions\/30202"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/30201"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=30200"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=30200"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=30200"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}