Angélica Casas
Reporting from Texas

Everything is bigger in Texas, as they say, including celebrations for 4 July, the US Independence Day holiday.

Local parks and neighbourhoods throughout the state host big community events with food and live entertainment that culminate with the traditional fireworks display show.

Many events in Central Texas, though, had to be cancelled last-minute as a result of the rainfall. And even where gatherings still took place, the tragedy in Kerr County - and the uncertainty of so many people still missing - overshadowed the festivities.

The rain is expected to continue here overnight and through Sunday.

US President Donald Trump has made his first comments on the severe flooding in Texas that has claimed at least 24 lives, with more than 20 missing at a holiday camp for girls.

"It's terrible," he said, adding the floods are "shocking".

There was a long line of officials taking questions from reporters at the press conference.

They have been asked why evacuation orders weren't issued, given the deluge expected in the area.

The live feed has been a little patchy so it's been hard to tell who is speaking at times, but one official said: "You all got the forecast... it did not predict the amount of rain that we saw".

Another added that evacuation orders could have created "chaos" on the roads and put more people at risk of being swept away.

"There's a very fine balance [for authorities]," he added.

Angélica Casas
Reporting from Texas

Governor Greg Abbott has continued to call for prayers as search and rescue operations continue through the region alongside the Guadalupe River.

“This is a time when we as a state, as a community, need God more than ever,” Abbott said at the press conference.

Officials have said a group of children are still missing from Camp Mystic, a local camp ground that was hosting about 700 school-age girls.

The governor pleas for prayers to continue for the missing.

However authorities have added that they don't know how many people in total are missing as a result of the floods.

We've heard that damage to telecommunications infrastructure has made it hard to make contact with many people in the region.

Responding to questions from reporters, authorities say they are still searching for 23-25 girls who are missing from Camp Mystic.

Texas park rangers earlier said they had been able to reach the river-side summer camp and had started rescuing some of the children who were stranded there.

But a large group of girls remain unaccounted for.

We're now hearing more details about rescue operations from Texas Maj Gen Thomas Suelzer.

Five helicopters - paired with rescue swimmers - were deployed, as well as "high-profile tactical military vehicles" to move evacuees out of high water areas to shelter.

So far, 237 people have been rescued, he says.

Authorities have just said the death toll from the floods in Kerr County has now risen to 24, up from 13.

County Sheriff Larry L. Leitha said that officials will not be identifying those who have died, as relatives are still being notified.

Another person has died in Kendall County, he added, but it unclear at this point if it is directly related to the weather event.

In front of the cameras, Greg Abbott signed an emergency declaration - which he says will enable authorities to give rescuers all the resources they need to search for those who are unaccounted for.

You can follow the press conference by clicking Watch live at the top of the page.

The governor said rescuers will continue tirelessly searching for those who are missing - around the clock.

"[Searches] will continue in the darkness of night. They will take place when the sun is rising in the morning. They will be non stop."

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has just started his press conference about the severe flooding in Texas.

"So many people have been swept up into an extraordinary catastrophe," he says.

We need a "robust response", he continues.

We've met with officials and we're collaborating to make sure we address everyone's concerns, Abbott says.

Angélica Casas
Reporting from Texas

We’re starting to learn the identities of people who are missing.

Ella Cahill, Aidan Heartfield and Joyce Badon are graduates of Monsignor Kelly High School in Beaumont, a city about a 5-hour drive from Kerr County. They are missing alongside friend Reese Manchaca.

According to a Facebook post by Mackenzie Hodulik, Cahill’s older sister, the group was last heard from at 04:00 local time (10:00 BST), as they were trying to escape a home to “get to higher ground”.

It's now around 21:15 local time.

Image source, Texas Division of Emergency Management

Texas Governor Greg Abbott is due to address the media shortly on the severe floods with state and local officials.

We will continue to bring you updates.

Wardens from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department have reached Camp Mystic, where authorities say more than 20 girls have been unaccounted for since floodwaters swept through the area.

Telecommunication outages in the area have made it hard to contact many people in the region - including those at the summer camp.

In a post on X, external, said the department said they are "beginning to bring campers out" - though it unclear if these include the group authorities held grave fears for.

Image source, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department

The National Weather Service says more flooding remains possible over parts of west-central Texas.

It said several inches of rain fell across the region from Thursday night to this afternoon. The now saturated soil and river flooding make the region "sensitive" to more rainfall.

Light to moderate rain could continue in the San Antonio region through the night, with the possibility of some heavy downpours.

A flash flood warning is in place for Western Llano County in south central Texas this evening.

The weather service advises that people turn around when encountering flooded roads. River banks and culverts can become unstable and unsafe.

We've been reporting on Camp Mystic, where authorities say 20 children are missing in the floods.

According to its website, Camp Mystic is a private Christian summer camp for girls that was established in 1926, and is located 18 miles northwest of Kerrville.

Earlier today, Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick read a statement from Camp Mystic, saying it has experienced "catastrophic levels of flooding," and that they have "no power, water or wifi".

He stated that all campers at Cypress Lake and Senior Hill are accounted for.

The statement also addressed the parents: "if your daughter is not accounted for, you have been notified. If you have not been personally contacted, then your daughter is accounted for."

"That does not mean [the missing children] have been lost. They could be out of communication," the lieutenant governor added.

We have just heard from Jason Allen, a correspondent for the BBC's US partner CBS News, who is on the ground in flood-hit Kerrville.

Appearing on the BBC News Channel, he is standing near a restaurant in a caravan park, a spot that was underwater this morning.

"Usually, when you arrive on a scene, you can kind of tell what was damaged, what was destroyed," he says.

"In this case, there's really no context for what this was, because the flood water, the Guadalupe River, washed it all away."

He says there were dozens of caravans, motorhomes and cabins all along this area where people were spending the 4 July holiday weekend.

"All of those structures, all of these RVs are now gone and they are somewhere... down the river," he added.

Angélica Casas
Reporting from Texas

Earlier I reported about the Kerrville Breaking News group on Facebook being inundated, external with families posting about relatives who are unaccounted for.

I’ve just heard from Rebecca Johnston, who had posted that she was trying to get in touch with her father Mark, who lives in Hunt, Texas with his dog.

She was able to update me moments ago that her father has just been located and is safe. His is one of only a few homes along the Guadalupe River in Hunt that is still standing

“I felt like a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders,” Johnston told me. “As I live in Colorado hearing the good news he was safe was such a relief.”

Johnston said her father had been unable to get in touch with her due to significant outages as a result of downed power lines.

Both of Texas' senators have reacted to the floods.

Ted Cruz urged people to follow the instructions of local authorities, and posted on the social media site X: "Please pray right now for everyone in the Hill Country, especially Camp Mystic", referring to the summer camp where 20 children are missing.

"Multiple helicopters are performing search & rescue. President Trump committed ANYTHING Texas needs", Cruz said.

There has been "tragic loss of life in the hill country from historic flooding along the Guadalupe River", said John Cornyn.

In a follow up post, he added "God bless our first responders. Pray for those imperiled".

At the news conference earlier today, Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly - the top official in the county - was pressed as to why the camps along the Guadalupe River weren't evacuated ahead of the flood.

"We didn't know this flood was coming. Rest assured, no one knew this kind of flood was coming," Kelly responded.

He later added "we do not have a warning system" in the area, which has regular floods.

He said what happened on Friday "far" surpassed a flood in 1987, which resulted in the deaths of 10 teenagers on a church camp bus near the town of Comfort, south of Kerr County.