As Texas Flood Deaths Rise, Officials Blast Faulty Forecast by National Weather Service

essentialsaltes · Jul 21, 2025

essentialsaltes said:
Conspiracy Theories About the Texas Floods Lead to Death Threats
Disinformation around a “weather weapon” and cloud seeding is being widely promoted by everyone from anti-government extremists to GOP influencers—leading to real-world consequences.

How a California cloud-seeding company became the center of a Texas flood conspiracy

Two days before the waters of the Guadalupe River swelled into a deadly and devastating Fourth of July flood in Kerr County, Texas, engineers with a California-based company called Rainmaker took off in an airplane about 100 miles away and dispersed 70 grams of silver iodide into a cloud.

Their goal? To make it rain over Texas — part of a weather modification practice known as cloud seeding, which uses chemical compounds to augment water droplets inside clouds, making the drops large enough and heavy enough to fall to the ground.

Soon after the flight, Rainmaker’s meteorologists identified an inflow of moisture to the region and advised the team to suspend operations, which they did, Doricko said. Around 1 a.m. the next day, the National Weather Service issued its first flash flood watch for the Kerr County region.

“The biggest and best cloud seeding operations we’ve seen to date have produced tens of millions — and maximally like 100 million — gallons of precipitation,” he said. “We saw in excess of a trillion gallons of precipitation from that flood. Not only could cloud seeding not have caused this, but the aerosols that we dispersed days prior could not have persisted in the atmosphere long enough to have had any consequence on the storm.”

But in the hours after the flood swept through the greater Kerrville area and killed at least 135 people, including three dozen children, conspiracy theories began swirling among a small but vocal group of fringe figures.

“I NEED SOMEONE TO LOOK INTO WHO WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS … WHEN WAS THE LAST CLOUD SEEDING?” wrote Pete Chambers, a former U.S. special forces commander and prominent far-right activist, on the social media platform X.

Within hours of the deadly flood, Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said she was introducing a bill to make all forms of weather modification — such as cloud seeding — a felony.

That same week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency launched two newwebsites to “address public questions and concerns “ about weather modification, geoengineering, and contrails, or the thin clouds that form behind aircraft at high altitudes.

Doricko, Rainmaker’s CEO, said he was disappointed to see cloud seeding politicized in the wake of the Texas flood. He was taken aback when he saw that Rep. Greene had posted a picture of his face on X — “insinuating somewhat that cloud seeding, or I, was responsible for the natural disaster in Texas, when any meteorologist or atmospheric scientist could tell you otherwise,” he said.

essentialsaltes · Jul 23, 2025

essentialsaltes said:
FEMA’s response to Texas flood slowed by Noem’s cost controls
...officials at FEMA leapt into action, preparing to deploy critical search and rescue teams and life-saving resources
But almost instantly, FEMA ran into bureaucratic obstacles, four officials inside the agency told CNN.
Noem didn’t authorize FEMA’s deployment of Urban Search and Rescue teams until Monday, more than 72 hours after the flooding began, multiple sources told CNN.

FEMA official quits after Trump cuts hobble Texas flood response

The Federal Emergency Management Agency chief in charge of Urban Search and Rescue has quit the agency following a lackluster response to the recent flooding in Texas that killed more than 100 people.

Ken Pagurek resigned on Monday, reportedly in response to efforts by the Trump administration to hobble the agency, part of President Donald Trump’s ongoing policies against funding and properly staffing branches of the federal government. Previously, Pagurek worked for more than a decade at FEMA’s Urban Search and Rescue branch and led multiple teams responding to natural disasters.

CNN reported that “Pagurek told colleagues at FEMA that the delay was the tipping point that led to his voluntary departure after months of frustration with the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle the agency, according to two sources familiar with his thinking.”

essentialsaltes · Jul 23, 2025

Texas county’s emergency management coordinator was likely asleep in critical morning hours of deadly floods, sheriff says

When asked if he knew whether Kerr County Emergency Management Coordinator W.B. "Dub" Thomas was working the night before the early morning July 4 flooding that killed at least 136 people in the state, Sheriff Larry Leitha said: "I'm sure he was at home asleep at that time," and added that he was also asleep.

essentialsaltes · Aug 1, 2025

essentialsaltes said:
Texas county’s emergency management coordinator was likely asleep in critical morning hours of deadly floods, sheriff says
When asked if he knew whether Kerr County Emergency Management Coordinator W.B. "Dub" Thomas was working the night before the early morning July 4 flooding that killed at least 136 people in the state, Sheriff Larry Leitha said: "I'm sure he was at home asleep at that time," and added that he was also asleep.

Kerr County, Texas, lead emergency management official says he was home sick and asleep during deadly flooding

The flood killed 108 people, including 37 children, in Kerr County.

Thomas said that after working a full day on July 2, he went home sick. He said at the time, no concerns had been raised about an elevated weather condition "beyond what is typical for the region during the summer."

Thomas said he stayed home sick on July 3 and did not participate in two meetings dealing with the Texas emergency management coordination center.

Thomas said his supervisors, including the Kerr County sheriff, were aware he was out sick.

"I was awakened around 5:30 a.m., on July the Fourth by my wife following a call from the city of Kerrville EMC (Emergency Management Coordinator) Jeremy Hughes requesting that I mobilize," Thomas said.

During his testimony, Thomas said that of the 19 camps along the river, six of them had an emergency response plan filed with the county.

essentialsaltes · Wednesday at 2:14 PM

essentialsaltes said:
Camp Mystic 'grieving the loss' of 27 campers and counselors following catastrophic Texas floods

Camp Mystic Is Reopening Next Summer, Sparking Outrage From Parents as the Search for Missing Campers Continues

Camp Mystic sent the letters out on Monday, Sept. 22 in two separate emails to “families of the girls who died, and one to a much broader group of past campers and their families,” the New York Times reported.

However, the families of the deceased claim they were left out of the loop and had no heads-up regarding any plans for a memorial.

Blake Bonner, the father of Lila Bonner, 9, said relatives “were not consulted about and did not approve this memorial,” per the Times.

Cici Steward, whose 8-year-old child Cile Steward remains missing, added, “The truth is, Camp Mystic failed our daughters.”

“Recovery teams are still out there, scouring the river, risking and sacrificing so much to find her so we can finally lay her to rest. For their efforts, we are eternally grateful,” Cici added. “Camp Mystic, however, has only added to our grief.”

Camp message in full here.

First and foremost, we will be designing and creating a memorial dedicated to the lives of the campers and counselors lost on July 4th. We hope this space will serve as a place of reflection and remembrance of these beautiful girls. We continue to pray for the grieving families and all those who lost loved ones.
Second, Camp Mystic Cypress Lake will be open for Summer 2026. ...
Because of the devastating damage sustained by Camp Mystic Guadalupe River, we will not be able to re-open in 2026. However, we are finalizing plans that would allow [surviving] Camp Mystic Guadalupe River campers to attend Camp Mystic Cypress Lake next summer.

Desk trauma · Wednesday at 2:27 PM

essentialsaltes said:
Camp Mystic Is Reopening Next Summer, Sparking Outrage From Parents as the Search for Missing Campers Continues
Camp Mystic sent the letters out on Monday, Sept. 22 in two separate emails to “families of the girls who died, and one to a much broader group of past campers and their families,” the New York Times reported.

However, the families of the deceased claim they were left out of the loop and had no heads-up regarding any plans for a memorial.

Blake Bonner, the father of Lila Bonner, 9, said relatives “were not consulted about and did not approve this memorial,” per the Times.

Cici Steward, whose 8-year-old child Cile Steward remains missing, added, “The truth is, Camp Mystic failed our daughters.”

“Recovery teams are still out there, scouring the river, risking and sacrificing so much to find her so we can finally lay her to rest. For their efforts, we are eternally grateful,” Cici added. “Camp Mystic, however, has only added to our grief.”

Camp message in full here.

First and foremost, we will be designing and creating a memorial dedicated to the lives of the campers and counselors lost on July 4th. We hope this space will serve as a place of reflection and remembrance of these beautiful girls. We continue to pray for the grieving families and all those who lost loved ones.
Second, Camp Mystic Cypress Lake will be open for Summer 2026. ...
Because of the devastating damage sustained by Camp Mystic Guadalupe River, we will not be able to re-open in 2026. However, we are finalizing plans that would allow [surviving] Camp Mystic Guadalupe River campers to attend Camp Mystic Cypress Lake next summer.

Why would anyone put their child in the care of a organization that failed that catostropically? Never mind what fool is insuring the place now…

essentialsaltes · Wednesday at 2:31 PM

Desk trauma said:
Why would anyone put their child in the care of a organization that failed that catostropically? Never mind what fool is insuring the place now…

They did point to new laws on the books.

iluvatar5150 · Wednesday at 2:37 PM

Desk trauma said:
Why would anyone put their child in the care of a organization that failed that catostropically? Never mind what fool is insuring the place now…

Presumably, it's under new management.

Desk trauma · Wednesday at 2:44 PM

iluvatar5150 said:
Presumably, it's under new management.

Even if everyone even tangentially involved drowned with them, or took it upon themselves to do so later, and was replaced I would want nothing to do with the place. Guess I’m too picky about kids drowning. Silly me.

I mean schools have been abandoned and torn down over fewer casualties.

essentialsaltes · Thursday at 10:13 AM

essentialsaltes said:
Trump DHS Chief Noem Rages At CNN ‘Lies’ On Fox News Even As Her Agency Confirms FEMA Delay In Texas Flood Disaster
CNN dropped a bombshell report Wednesday, blaming Noem’s cost-cutting policies for delaying FEMA’s response until Monday — a timeline that DHS confirmed despite trashing CNN in a statement that was intended as a rebuttal.

Fema’s acting chief reportedly could not be reached during deadly Texas floods

The US Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema)’s acting administrator was largely unreachable after deadly flooding swept through Texas in July, according to a new report.

That meant the agency could not deploy search-and-rescue resources as quickly as possible. The federal agency had already faced criticism for its slow response to the disaster in which more than 130 people died.

[Noem had to approve things.]

As such, Richardson needed to quickly submit requests for assistance to Noem, but instead, “nobody could get a hold of him for hours and hours,” a senior official who coordinated search-and-rescue resources told the Post, which spoke with eight current and former officials who said they could not reach Richardson after the floods.

rambot · Thursday at 10:42 AM

essentialsaltes said:
Fema’s acting chief reportedly could not be reached during deadly Texas floods
The US Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema)’s acting administrator was largely unreachable after deadly flooding swept through Texas in July, according to a new report.

That meant the agency could not deploy search-and-rescue resources as quickly as possible. The federal agency had already faced criticism for its slow response to the disaster in which more than 130 people died.

[Noem had to approve things.]

As such, Richardson needed to quickly submit requests for assistance to Noem, but instead, “nobody could get a hold of him for hours and hours,” a senior official who coordinated search-and-rescue resources told the Post, which spoke with eight current and former officials who said they could not reach Richardson after the floods.

Republicans decrying how "government can't get anything done".

Republicans habitually not getting anything done.

Bradskii · Thursday at 5:11 PM

essentialsaltes said:
As such, Richardson needed to quickly submit requests for assistance to Noem, but instead, “nobody could get a hold of him for hours and hours,” a senior official who coordinated search-and-rescue resources told the Post, which spoke with eight current and former officials who said they could not reach Richardson after the floods.

I really don't get that. They think people's lives are in danger and they sit there waiting for a phone call to be returned before they act? Gee, my hands are tied. I need permission.

You make one call and one call only. If Noem can't be found (I find that exceptionally difficult to believe) then you act on your own initiative.

essentialsaltes · Thursday at 6:04 PM

Bradskii said:
I really don't get that. They think people's lives are in danger and they sit there waiting for a phone call to be returned before they act? Gee, my hands are tied. I need permission.

You make one call and one call only. If Noem can't be found (I find that exceptionally difficult to believe) then you act on your own initiative.

Whatever the situation, the search and rescue chief was fed up over it and resigned.

FEMA search and rescue chief resigns after frustration with Texas flood response

“It is laughable that a career public employee, who claims to serve the American people, would choose to resign over our refusal to hastily approve a six-figure deployment contract without basic financial oversight,” another DHS spokesman said in a statement about Pagurek’s resignation. “We’re being responsible with taxpayer dollars, that’s our job.”

Hopefully the little tykes can tread water until basic financial oversight has been achieved.

Tuur · 2025-09-26T05:48:21-0500

Desk trauma said:
I mean schools have been abandoned and torn down over fewer casualties.

When it's done for purely emotional reasons, that's always seemed like over-reaction to me, but that's different from reopening a camp in an area that has been shown to be subject to catastrophic flash flooding. It's better to be on ground high enough that it's not subject to flash flooding than to rely on picking up warnings over spotty radio and cell phone service.

As Texas Flood Deaths Rise, Officials Blast Faulty Forecast by National Weather Service

Fact-Based Lifeform

Conspiracy Theories About the Texas Floods Lead to Death Threats​

How a California cloud-seeding company became the center of a Texas flood conspiracy​

Fact-Based Lifeform

FEMA’s response to Texas flood slowed by Noem’s cost controls​

FEMA official quits after Trump cuts hobble Texas flood response​

Fact-Based Lifeform

Texas county’s emergency management coordinator was likely asleep in critical morning hours of deadly floods, sheriff says​

Fact-Based Lifeform

Texas county’s emergency management coordinator was likely asleep in critical morning hours of deadly floods, sheriff says​

Kerr County, Texas, lead emergency management official says he was home sick and asleep during deadly flooding​

Fact-Based Lifeform

Camp Mystic 'grieving the loss' of 27 campers and counselors following catastrophic Texas floods​

Camp Mystic Is Reopening Next Summer, Sparking Outrage From Parents as the Search for Missing Campers Continues​

[redacted]

Camp Mystic Is Reopening Next Summer, Sparking Outrage From Parents as the Search for Missing Campers Continues​

Fact-Based Lifeform

Well-Known Member

[redacted]

Fact-Based Lifeform

Trump DHS Chief Noem Rages At CNN ‘Lies’ On Fox News Even As Her Agency Confirms FEMA Delay In Texas Flood Disaster​

Fema’s acting chief reportedly could not be reached during deadly Texas floods​

Senior Member

Fema’s acting chief reportedly could not be reached during deadly Texas floods​

Old age should burn and rave at close of day;

Fact-Based Lifeform

FEMA search and rescue chief resigns after frustration with Texas flood response​

Well-Known Member

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