BLACK Hawk helicopters have rescued more than 200 children and staff as historic flash floods devastated part of Missouri and engulfed a summer camp.
On Friday afternoon, the Army National Guard airlifted the group from Camp Taum Sauk in Reynolds County after once-in-a-millenium floodwaters washed away roads and buildings near the site.
Missouri National Guard evacuates young campers and counsellors who were stranded at Camp Taum Sauk in Reynolds County Credit: Reuters
Torrential rain unleashed what forecasters have described as a once-in-a-millennium flooding event Credit: Facebook/Florissant Valley Fire Protection District
The raging waters swallowed roads, vehicles, and buildings, causing mass devastation Credit: Shutterstock Editorial
The torrential rain sent water levels soaring, forcing residents and campers to flee to higher ground Credit: Reuters
The triggered by torrential downpours tore through towns, campgrounds, and popular outdoor spots.
The state’s Black Hawk teams managed to evacuate all campers and counselors to the safety of a nearby elementary school after they become cut off by rising waters.
Officials warned everyone in the area to seek higher ground which continually saw the campers move from one base to another in a desperate bid to get to safety.
Dozens of girls were sleeping in cabins near the river and then moved to the camp cafeteria before being moved again.
They spent the terrifying hours trying to distract themselves with arts and crafts, like making bracelets for each other.
Meanwhile, the boys who were in cabins higher up, were trapped with counselors waiting for the Black Hawk team to arrive.
The terrifying scenes echoed that of last year’s deadly Camp Mystic disaster in Texas where 25 children, two counselors, and the camp’s executive director died as flood waters overwhelmed the site.
The broader Texas Hill Country flood disaster ultimately killed over 120 people, than Hurricane Harvey, a Category 4 hurricane that devastated the state in 2017.
When word of the flash flooding in Missouri first broke, mom Jennifer Box, whose two sons were at the camp, couldn’t stop thinking about the horrors of Camp Mystic, the New York Times reported.
Her two children were among the campers caught in the rising water and forced to move to higher ground.
“It was very harrowing,” Box told the outlet.
“We knew they were safe, but we didn’t know how to get to them, and that’s kind of your worst nightmare.”
Friday’s camp rescue reminded terrified parents of the Camp Mystic tragedy when 25 girls and 2 counselors died when floodwaters engulfed the site in 2025 Credit: AFP
Among the Camp Mystic victims were (Top row left to right) Mary Grace Baker, Cile Steward, Virginia Hollis, Greta Toranzo, and (Bottom row left to right) Linnie McCown, Kellyanne Lytal, Margaret Sheedy, and Lainey Landry Credit: Supplied
In a separate incident nearby, 10 to 17 people at the Bearcat Getaway campground are believed to have been thrown into flood waters when the building they were sheltering in collapsed due to the torrents of water pushing against it.
All were rescued and accounted for, officials confirmed.
During the daring rescue mission, two responding boats capsized in the floodwaters, though the crews aboard were safely recovered downstream.
Meanwhile, road collapses have made accessing people in danger incredibly difficult with travel now categorized as “extremely dangerous.”
National Weather Service rainfall data showing the storm ranks as a 1-in-1,000-year weather event.
The data shows more than a foot of rain fell in under 24 hours across parts of southeastern Missouri — a rainfall rate with just a 0.1% chance of happening in a given year.
In total, rescue crews pulled at least 350 people from the floodwaters as of Saturday afternoon, the outlet reported.
So far, one fatality has been confirmed as a 23-year-old woman was swept away by rising water.
Search crews located Faith Gregory’s body on Saturday nearly two miles downstream from her home.
“This is not the outcome that any of us were hoping for,” Crawford County Sheriff Darin J. Layman said in a press release .
“Our thoughts and prayers are with Faith’s family, friends, and all those affected by this tragic loss.”
As Missouri’s flash flood emergency eases, attention is shifting to Kentucky and Tennessee which are now in the path of the storm with numerous flood warnings being issued.
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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