Lead
On Nov. 10, 2025, families of victims from the July 4, 2025 Camp Mystic flood filed two separate wrongful-death suits in Travis County, seeking more than $1 million each. The complaints, brought on behalf of the families of six campers and two counselors who died, allege that the camp and members of the Eastland family knew of chronic flooding risks and failed to warn parents or adequately protect children. Plaintiffs contend decisions by camp management and related companies contributed to the deaths of 27 young people, including Eloise “Lulu” Peck. The filings ask a jury to award damages and to hold the camp and its owners accountable.
Key Takeaways
- Two lawsuits filed Nov. 10, 2025 in Travis County seek over $1 million each under Texas’ Wrongful Death Act for mental anguish, funeral expenses and other damages.
- Plaintiffs allege 27 deaths resulted from the July 4, 2025 flash flood at Camp Mystic — described in filings as 25 campers and two counselors — and identify specific victims including Eloise “Lulu” Peck and Cile Steward.
- Litigation names camp owners Dick and Tweety Eastland (Dick died in the flood) and several corporate entities including Camp Mystic, Mystic Camps Family Partnership, Mystic Camps Management and Natural Fountains Properties.
- Suitants assert FEMA map amendments in 2013, 2019 and 2020 removed flood-zone designations for camp structures along the Guadalupe River and Cypress Lake.
- Plaintiffs allege long-standing flooding history at the Eastland-owned camp (in the family since 1939) and cite prior incidents that prompted evacuations and damage.
- One multi-family suit details alleged orders to “stay put” and that some cabins — Bubble Inn (13 campers, 2 counselors) and Twins (11 campers) — were not directed to move to safer ground.
- Camp counsel has said the flood was unprecedented and unexpected; the camp also issued a statement offering prayers and condolences.
- State lawmakers have launched bipartisan review efforts and passed safety reforms during a special legislative session this summer to address camp safety and warning systems.
Background
Camp Mystic, located near Hunt west of Kerrville and held by the Eastland family since 1939, sits along the Upper Guadalupe River and Cypress Lake. The camp’s history includes multiple flood-related incidents over the past century that plaintiffs say led to evacuations, property damage and swept-away vehicles and personal items. Those episodes form part of the plaintiffs’ contention that flooding risk was known and recurrent.
The complaints detail a pattern of management decisions and corporate structuring that plaintiffs say reduced transparency and liability: corporate entities such as Camp Mystic, LLC and Natural Fountains Properties, Inc. are named alongside family members. According to the filings, the Eastlands pursued FEMA map amendments in 2013, 2019 and 2020 to remove some camp buildings from a 100-year floodplain designation, a move plaintiffs say lowered insurance costs and concealed hazards from campers’ families.
Main Event
On July 4, 2025, sudden floodwaters swept through sections of Camp Mystic during an overnight session, killing dozens of young campers and counselors. Plaintiffs say the rapid surge struck cabins near the Guadalupe and Cypress Lake in the portion of the property known as Camp Mystic Guadalupe. The next day, bodies were recovered from areas near camp, including the body of Dick Eastland found in a Chevrolet Tahoe swept away by the waters.
The multifamily complaint provides a minute-by-minute narrative alleging camp leadership knew of rising waters by the afternoon of July 3 but issued orders that some campers should remain in place rather than move to Rec Hall. According to the suit, personnel evacuated some cabins to the Rec Hall but not Bubble Inn and Twins, which were roughly 300 feet away and later overwhelmed by flood currents.
Plaintiffs allege that 13 campers and two counselors from Bubble Inn died after being swept from their cabin; 11 campers from the Twins cabins also perished despite reported rescue attempts in which some held onto trees until morning. One counselor is alleged to have believed occupants of the washed-away Tahoe were among those lost from Bubble Inn.
Families further contend that camp communications to parents were unclear and delayed: plaintiffs say camp staff told families the next morning that campers were “unaccounted for,” and many families did not learn of confirmed deaths until late that evening. The filings also describe disturbing post-event behavior and communications by some Eastland family members that plaintiffs say compounded their trauma.
Analysis & Implications
The lawsuits raise legal and regulatory questions about private camp safety, disclosure duties, and the role of local and federal flood-mapping in risk communication. If plaintiffs prove that Camp Mystic sought FEMA map changes to reduce insurance obligations or obscure hazards, courts could view those actions as evidence of negligence or want of ordinary care. Such findings would have implications for other camps operating in flood-prone terrain.
Beyond liability, the cases focus attention on early-warning systems and coordination between private entities and county emergency services. Plaintiffs emphasize the seat held by Dick Eastland on the Upper Guadalupe River Authority board to argue he understood local warning-system shortcomings; defendants counter that the July surge exceeded prior events and was unforeseeable. The factual resolution of warning times, watch/warning dissemination and camp-level alerting will be central at trial.
Economically, verdicts or settlements could prompt changes in camp insurance practices, property siting, and capital investment in warning and evacuation infrastructure. Legislatures and regulators may respond by tightening standards for overnight youth programs in floodplains, as Texas lawmakers began to do in the special session that followed the disaster.
Finally, these suits highlight the tension between family-run legacy camps and modern regulatory expectations. Camp Mystic’s long family ownership since 1939 underscores how older institutions may rely on traditional practices while facing contemporary liability and safety standards; courts and regulators will consider whether those practices comport with current duty-of-care obligations.
Comparison & Data
| Year | Event | Plaintiffs’ Claim |
|---|---|---|
| 1939 | Camp enters Eastland family ownership | Historical ownership noted in filings |
| 2013, 2019, 2020 | FEMA map amendments | Plaintiffs say designations removed for some structures |
| July 4, 2025 | Flash flood at Camp Mystic Guadalupe | Plaintiffs attribute 27 deaths to inadequate warnings/evacuation |
The table summarizes key dates cited in the complaints and places the July 2025 disaster in the context of prior regulatory changes plaintiffs allege reduced public knowledge of flood risks. Plaintiffs use those map-change years to argue a deliberate effort to alter perceived hazard zones; defendants dispute that characterization and the causal link to the disaster. Quantifying how map changes affected insurance, building standards or communications will be an evidentiary task in discovery and at trial.
Reactions & Quotes
Camp counsel said the surge was far greater than previous floods, unexpected, and that the camp will rebut allegations of wrongdoing in court.
Jeff Ray, counsel for Camp Mystic (legal statement)
One defense attorney stated he believes the camp bore no responsibility for the drownings and expressed readiness to try the case to demonstrate that position to a jury.
Mikal Watts, attorney assisting Camp Mystic defense (interview)
In their petition the Peck family emphasized the deep trust parents place in camps and accused Camp Mystic of betraying that trust, seeking accountability and prevention for other children.
Plaintiffs’ petition on behalf of the Peck family (court filing)
Unconfirmed
- Whether specific FEMA map amendments were motivated by profit rather than new technical data remains to be proved in discovery.
- Exact timing and content of internal camp orders on July 3–4, 2025 are disputed and under investigation; plaintiffs and defendants offer differing chronologies.
- The full impact of county-level warning systems versus camp-level alerting on the outcome has not been independently verified and is pending legislative and investigative review.
Bottom Line
The lawsuits against Camp Mystic and members of the Eastland family transform the July 4, 2025 tragedy from an emergency-response controversy into a test of corporate and custodial responsibility for private youth camps in flood-prone areas. Plaintiffs allege a chain of decisions—corporate structuring, FEMA map appeals, and on-the-ground emergency choices—that together increased risk and concealed it from families.
How courts evaluate the link between past map changes, known flooding history, and the actions taken the night of the flood will determine accountability and shape future policy. The cases will likely produce detailed discovery about flood planning, communications, and who knew what and when; their outcome could drive stronger rules for camp siting, mandatory warning systems, and transparency for parents entrusting children to overnight programs.
Sources
- Austin American-Statesman — local news report and court-filing summary
- FEMA — federal flood mapping and floodplain policy (official)
- Kerr County — county emergency management and public notices (official)