By Joshua Chaffin
A Texas summer camp where 27 girls died in a flood last July has been informed by state authorities that it hasn't met adequate safety standards to be granted an operating license for this summer.
The notice, sent by the Texas Department of State Health Services, found that the emergency plans submitted by all-girls Camp Mystic fell short of its standards in more than 20 categories.
Among other remedies, the Texas DSHS ordered the camp to produce maps showing all cabins within Federal Emergency Management Agency-designated flood plains and floodways. It stated that Mystic needed to identify an emergency-preparedness coordinator and asked for more specificity about staff roles in the event of fires, evacuations and other emergency situations.
The letter arrived a little more than a month before Mystic is set to welcome the first of some 850 campers on May 30 for its 100th season, giving it scant time to make necessary improvements.
The main campus where the fatalities occurred on July 4 last year has been closed off. The Eastland family that owns the camp instead was planning to host girls at the neighboring Camp Mystic Cypress Lake. It is separated from the main campus by a creek but sits on higher ground and didn't flood last year.
"The review determined that while your camp has complied with certain requirements, several areas require attention to meet full compliance," the letter states.
A DSHS spokesperson said that "most" Texas youth camps received deficiency letters
because of the new camp-safety laws spurred by last year's tragedy.
In a statement, Mystic acknowledged that it had received the "deficiency letter," and that it was "working closely with DSHS through the appropriate process to address the areas outlined."
The camp's reopening has driven a wedge through Mystic's multigenerational sisterhood. Families of the 25 campers and two counselors who died last year have sued the Eastlands for negligence and wrongful death, claiming they weren't prepared for the flood and disregarded repeated warnings. Several of the families have lobbied for the state to deny the Eastlands a license.
Many of their grievances were aired during a hearing this month in an Austin, Texas, courtroom that offered a vivid -- and often harrowing -- recounting of the disaster.
Others think the floods were far worse than any recent precedent, and that the Eastlands have been unfairly maligned. They note that 92 others died in Kerr County because of the floods -- deaths that have drawn far less political and media attention. Dick Eastland, the family patriarch, was among those killed, dying while trying to rescue campers.
His son Britt, who directs Mystic Cypress Lake with his wife, Catie, claimed in a recent interview that the camp had met or exceeded new camp-safety laws.
Among other measures, the camp has installed new water meters that provide real-time measurements of currents and river levels. They will have more trained security personnel on hand, as well as a therapist.
Write to Joshua Chaffin at joshua.chaffin@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 24, 2026 17:09 ET (21:09 GMT)
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