Missouri rain rescues 200 children as summer camp is cut off by floods

Jeffersoncity,UPDATED: Jul 12, 2026 02:44 IST

Heavy rain battered parts of Missouri on Friday, triggering rescues and evacuations, including at a summer camp with more than 200 children. One person remained missing on Saturday, even as officials said there were no reports of major injuries or fatalities.

The severe weather also raised the risk of thunderstorms and flash flooding in other states as the slow-moving storm system moved south. The Weather Service said the impact stretched from the Ozark Mountains in southern Missouri into large parts of the Ohio and Tennessee river valleys, with some places likely to see effects into Sunday.

In Missouri, roads around Camp Taum Sauk in the small southeastern community of Lesterville were washed away, leaving children and staff stranded, according to Sgt. Eddie Young of the state highway patrol. The Army Guard used Black Hawk helicopters to fly them to a nearby elementary school, where they were reunited with their families. In a post on Instagram, the camp thanked emergency crews, saying, "We are beyond thankful for your help keeping our camp community safe."

At the Bearcat Getaway campground near the Black River, about 140 kilometres south of St. Louis, campers climbed onto a building to escape the floodwaters, but it later collapsed, Young said. "Between the weight and the constant waters underneath it, it just gave away on them," he said. Young also said three other people were trapped in trees on the Black River in Reynolds County and were rescued.

In Crawford County, a woman was reported missing after a house was swept from its foundation. Young said on Saturday that Faith Gregory was the only person still unaccounted for in the county. Family and friends said on social media that they had resumed their search and asked others to watch out for Gregory and her dogs, who were also swept away. The weather service had issued flash flood warnings for the area as thunderstorms moved through one after another. "It's very, very popular place for recreation," Matt Beitscher, lead meteorologist at the Weather Service office in St. Louis, said of the affected counties. "So there are campgrounds there. There are float trip locations there. A lot of vulnerable populations that would be susceptible to flash flooding."

Governor Mike Kehoe declared a state of emergency and activated a search and rescue team to help. He said late on Friday that hundreds of people had been saved from floodwaters, trees, rooftops and stranded vehicles. Kehoe also said several major roads were impassable because of flooding and damage, and warned that the Black River was still rising and was expected to crest at more than 8.5 metres near Annapolis in southeastern Missouri, which would be a record. "As recovery efforts continue and additional rain is expected, I urge everyone in flood-prone and low-lying areas to stay weather-aware, have multiple ways of receiving alerts, and be ready to take protective action," Kehoe said in a statement.

The Missouri Emergency Management Agency said that although the storms were moving south and out of the state, more thunderstorms could still bring fresh flash flooding, especially in areas that had already received 15 to 30 centimetres of rain. In Reynolds County, two rescue boats capsized in the floodwaters, but the sheriff's office said other emergency personnel safely recovered the responders.

Elsewhere, flooding in eastern Tennessee closed some roads and brought down power lines, while authorities from Kentucky to West Virginia asked people to be ready to move to higher ground. Overall, the storm system left Missouri dealing with high water, major rescue work and one continuing search, while other states prepared for more heavy rain and flash flooding.

With PTI Inputs

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