Mexico Sends Help to Texas to Deal With Floods: What to Know

Mexico has sent water rescue teams and firefighters to help in Texas after the holiday weekend floods that have killed at least 100 people, with many more still missing.

Members of Mexico’s Civil Protection Water Rescue Team and Cure Firefighters were among those helping search efforts in Kerrville, Kerr County, a Mexican governmental agency said in a Facebook post.

Nine members of the water rescue team and four members of non-profit organization Foundation 911 had travelled to Texas on Sunday morning, said the post by Dirección de Protección Civil y Bomberos de Acuña, Coahuila.

Acuña lies close to the US border and some 145 miles south-west of Kerrville. Newsweek has contacted Acuña’s civil protection and fire department outside of regular working hours via email for comment.

Why It Matters

So far, more than 100 fatalities have been confirmed in the flooding, which puts it among the deadliest in U.S. history. Search and rescue missions continue as an unknown number of people remain missing.

Among the casualties were 27 children, many of whom had been camping at Camp Mystic, a Christian girls’ summer camp.

What To Know

As many Americans were set to celebrate the annual Fourth of July holiday, the NWS issued urgent warnings to people across central Texas about heavy downpours, which rapidly turned into months’ worth of rain falling at once.

The extent of the downpour caused rivers to overflow, with the Guadalupe River surging by more than 25 feet in only 45 minutes.

As the floodwater washed through central Texas, an RV park with families reportedly still inside their vehicles was swiftly inundated.

The events prompted Texas Governor Greg Abbott to declare a state of disaster in 15 counties – Bandera, Coke, Comal, Concho, Gillespie, Kendall, Kerr, Kimble, Llano, Mason, McCulloch, Menard, Reeves, San Saba, and Tom Green.

Further storms over the weekend brought several more inches of rain in places, prompting the National Weather Service (NWS) to extend flood watches across Central Texas through Monday evening.

Videos have been circulating on social media of Mexican personnel assisting the state’s efforts to recover missing people and help those stranded by the flooding.

Some users on X, formerly Twitter, have remarked on the contrast between Mexicans rushing to help Americans in their time of need and the isolationist approach to US-Mexican relations taken by MAGA supporters.

There has also been some criticism of the Trump administration for its cuts to NWS in light of the devastation, with the U.S. Senate‘s top Democrat, Chuck Schumer, calling for an investigation into the issue.

What People Are Saying

Texas Governor Greg Abbott said: “This is a time when we, as a state, need God more than ever. The one thing I hear the most are the prayers that are being sent for those who are in harm’s way. There is an extraordinary collaboration to make sure that we address everybody’s concern as quickly as possible. As part of this, I am signing a disaster declaration to ensure counties have access to every tool, strategy, and personnel that the State of Texas can provide to them, which will be limitless.”

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said: “Unfortunately, in the wake of this once-in-a-generation natural disaster, we have seen many falsehoods pushed by Democrats such as Senator Chuck Schumer and some members of the media. Blaming President Trump for these floods is a depraved lie, and it serves no purpose during this time of national mourning.”

US Senator Chuck Schumer wrote in a letter sent to Commerce Department Acting Inspector General Roderick Anderson, as seen as by ABC News: “Following the disastrous and deeply devastating flash flooding in Texas this weekend, I write to urge you to immediately to open an investigation into the scope, breadth, and ramifications of whether staffing shortages at key local National Weather Service (NWS) stations contributed to the catastrophic loss of life and property during the deadly flooding.”

He also wrote on X: “I’m heartbroken by the news of all those lost and all those impacted by the flooding in Texas. I’m closely monitoring the situation, and I thank all our first responders on the ground.”