The owners of Camp Mystic say they plan to partially reopen next summer the all-girls camp where 27 campers and counselors were killed during catastrophic floods that swept through the Texas Hill Country in July.
The area of the camp along the Guadalupe River that was destroyed by the floodwaters will not reopen next year, the owners said in a letter to Camp Mystic families, some of whom have criticized the nearly century-old camp over its safety measures and preparedness in wake of the tragedy. But another part of the camp that wasn't damaged will resume welcoming campers.
The letter was sent to families Monday, weeks after many of them stood behind Republican Gov. Greg Abbott as he signed tougher camp safety laws that prohibit cabins in dangerous parts of flood zones and require camp operators to develop detailed emergency plans, to train workers and to install and maintain emergency warning systems.
“As we work to finalize plans, we will do so in a way that is mindful of those we have lost," the letter said.
The campers and counselors were killed when the fast-rising floodwaters roared through a low-lying area of the summer camp before dawn on the Fourth of July. All told, the destructive flooding killed at least 136 people, raising questions about how things went so terribly wrong.
County leaders were asleep or out of town. The head of Camp Mystic had been tracking the weather beforehand, but it’s now unclear whether he saw an urgent warning from the National Weather Service that had triggered an emergency alert to phones in the area, a spokesperson for camp’s operators said in the immediate aftermath.
The camp, established in 1926, did not evacuate and was hit hard when the river rose from 14 feet (4.2 meters) to 29.5 feet (9 meters) within 60 minutes.
One of new state laws allocates $240 million from the state’s rainy day fund for disaster relief, along with money for warning sirens and improved weather forecasting.
Michael McCown, whose 8-year-old daughter Linnie died in the floods, was among those who urged lawmakers this summer to act.
“It will hurt my family forever that, for reasons I still do not know, these protections were not in place nor thought out thoroughly for my daughter and the rest of the girls here,” he said in August.
Cici Steward, whose 8-year-old daughter Cile remains missing, said “the truth is, Camp Mystic failed our daughters.”
“For my family, these months have felt like an eternity. For the camp, it seems like nothing more than a brief pause before business as usual,” she said in a statement Tuesday to The New York Times. “Camp Mystic is pressing ahead with reopening, even if it means inviting girls to swim in the same river that may potentially still hold my daughter’s body.”
The camp also said that it will build a memorial to those killed in the flooding.
“In the memorial’s design, we will strive to capture the beauty, kindness and grace they all shared, while focusing on the joy they carried and will always inspire in us all,” the letter said.
The letter said leaders are “working with engineers and other experts to determine how we will implement the changes required” under the newly passed bills.
The victims of the flood included Richard “Dick” Eastland, the owner of Camp Mystic, who a family spokesperson has said was killed while trying to rescue some of the campers.
“We are sorry that we have not been perfect at communicating, and we know that,” read the letter, signed by members of the Eastland family. “The distance that has grown between some of us saddens us all, and we are here to communicate with you as much as you desire while respecting each of your individual needs."
FILE - Campers belongings sit outside one of Camp Mystic's cabins near the Guadalupe River, July 7, 2025, in Hunt, Texas, after a flash flood swept through the area. (AP Photo/Eli Hartman, File)
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela’s acting President Delcy Rodríguez used her first state of the union message Thursday to advocate for opening the crucial state-run oil industry to more foreign investment following the Trump administration's pledge to seize control of Venezuelan crude sales.
For the first time, Rodríguez laid out a vision for Venezuela’s new political reality — one that challenges her government’s most deeply rooted beliefs less than two weeks after the United States captured and toppled former President Nicolás Maduro.
Under pressure from the U.S. to cooperate with its plans for reshaping Venezuela’s sanctioned oil industry, Maduro's former vice president declared that a “new policy is being formed in Venezuela."
She urged the foreign diplomats in attendance to tell investors abroad about the changes and called on lawmakers to approve oil sector reforms that would secure foreign firms' access to Venezuela’s vast reserves.
“Venezuela, in free trade relations with the world, can sell the products of its energy industry,” she said.
The Trump administration has said it plans to control future oil export revenues to ensure it benefits the Venezuelan people.
In that vein, Rodríguez described cash from the oil sales flowing into two sovereign wealth funds, one to support crisis-stricken health services and another to bolster public infrastructure, much of which was built under Maduro’s predecessor, Hugo Chávez, and has since deteriorated.
These days the country's hospitals are so poorly equipped that patients are asked to provide supplies needed for their care, from syringes to surgical screws.
While Rodríguez criticized the U.S. capture of Maduro and referred to a “stain on our relations," she also promoted the resumption of diplomacy between the historic adversaries. Her succinct, 44-minute speech and mollifying tone marked a dramatic contrast to her predecessors' fiery rants against U.S. imperialism that often went on for hours.
“Let us not be afraid of diplomacy,” Rodriguez. “I ask that politics not be transformed, that it not begin with hatred and intolerance.”
The day before, she gave a 4-minute briefing to the media to say her government would continue releasing prisoners detained under Maduro's harsh rule. But human rights groups have verified just a fraction of the releases that she claimed took place.
Rodríguez appears to be threading a needle.
A portrait of Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, was displayed next to her as she spoke. She called for the U.S. government to "respect the dignity" of Maduro, who is being held in a Brooklyn jail after pleading not guilty to drug-trafficking charges. She portrayed herself as defending Venezuela's sovereignty even as the country warmed up to the U.S. with dizzying speed.
“If one day, as acting president, I have to go to Washington, I will do so standing up, walking, not being dragged," she said. "I'll go standing tall ... never crawling.”
Rodríguez delivered her speech as Venezuela's Nobel Prize-winning opposition leader María Corina Machado was the one in Washington to meet President Donald Trump.
Since Maduro's ouster, Trump has frozen Machado out of discussions about the nation's political fate while embracing Rodríguez, praising Maduro’s long-time loyalist as a “terrific person” after holding his first known phone call with her on Wednesday.
Machado, whose party is considered to have won the tumultuous 2024 presidential elections despite Maduro's claims of victory, said she presented her Nobel Peace Prize medal to Trump during their closed-door conversation.
Emerging from the White House afterward, she greeted dozens of cheering supporters. "We can count on President Trump,” she told them, without elaborating.
Her role in Venezuelan politics remains uncertain as Rodríguez’s government has been effectively relieved of having to hold elections for the foreseeable future.
Machado’s meeting with Trump received no coverage in Venezuela.
The country's state-run TV still pumps out a steady stream of pro-government images, including various statements from Iranian and Russian officials decrying “U.S. aggression" and wall-to-wall coverage of state-orchestrated rallies demanding Maduro's return.
Crowds of teachers on Thursday marched through the streets of Venezuela’s capital, Caracas, carrying posters condemning the U.S. for “kidnapping” Maduro and chanting slogans in support of the government. National police wearing riot gear were everywhere. Pro-government graffiti scrawled across city walls read: “To doubt is to betray."
“They've kept the same anti-imperialist rhetoric going, but more moderated," said David Smilde, a Venezuela expert at Tulane University who has studied Venezuela for 30 years. “Their idea is to give Trump everything he wants economically, but stay the course politically."
On the streets of central Caracas, most Venezuelans going about their days declined to be interviewed about their opinions, fearful of government reprisals as Maduro's security apparatus remains intact. Others were simply at a loss of what to say about their country's strange new reality in which the U.S. claims to call the shots.
“It’s a complete sea of uncertainty, and the only one who now has the power to make decisions is the United States government,” said Pablo Rojas, 28, a music producer.
He said he was following Trump's meeting with Machado closely "to see if she takes a leadership position, if they consider her ready to lead the country or be a candidate." He shook his head in puzzlement. “It’s impossible to know what will happen.”
Associated Press writers Isabel DeBre in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Megan Janetsky in Mexico City contributed to this report.
Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america
Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez arrives at the National Assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez delivers her first state of the union address at the National Assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Ceylis Mendez and her daughter Zoe cool off in the Gulf of Venezuela in front of the Cardon oil refinery off the shore of Punta Cardon, Venezuela, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Flames rise from flare stacks at the Amuay refinery in Los Taques, Venezuela, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez, left, and Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello arrive at the National Assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez addresses lawmakers next to a picture of former President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores, at the National Assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez, center, her brother National Assembly President, Jorge Rodriguez, left, and Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello arrive at the National Assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez addresses the National Assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez addresses the National Assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez makes a statement to the press at Miraflores presidential palace in Caracas, Venezuela, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez, center, smiles flanked by Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello, right, and National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez after making a statement to the press at Miraflores presidential palace in Caracas, Venezuela, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
