AUSTIN, Texas (KXXV) — Camp Mystic parents who lost their daughters in the deadly Hill Country floods pleaded with lawmakers Wednesday to strengthen safety at Texas summer camps.
Watch the full story here:
Wearing pins that read Heaven’s 27, families testified before the Texas Senate and House Select Committee on Disaster Preparedness and Flooding.
“Our daughter was at camp. She was not protected, she was not safe, because she died, along with 26 other girls. I was not there to protect her,” said Lacy Virginia Hollis, mother of Virginia Hollis.
“She left for camp full of excitement and joy, she came home in a plywood box,” said Anne Lindsey Hunt, whose daughter, Janie Hunt, also died in the floods.
“They did exactly what they were told to do that morning: stay in their cabins. Our daughters paid the ultimate price for their obedience to a plan that was destined to fail,” said Blake Bonner, father of Lila Bonner.
“Camp Mystic was completely unprepared for the flooding that cost my daughter her life,” said Davin Hunt.
For some families, the pain remains compounded by uncertainty.
“My baby girl is still missing. Until she is found, our family lives in a torture chamber of uncertainty,” said Cici Williams Steward, whose daughter Cile has not been found.
“Joy and growth can not exist without safety. Cile’s chance to experience camp only existed because I ensured her safety was paramount. I ask you, ‘What could have been more important than that?’”
The families urged lawmakers to pass Senate Bill 1, which aims to strengthen disaster preparedness and require summer camps to adopt enforceable safety plans.
“Be prepared, simply be prepared,” Lars Hollis said.
“Please, I beg you all to do what is best for children all over our state, country, and world that come to Texas each summer,” said Carrie Hanna, Hadley Hanna’s mother.
“We must make sure that when parents entrust their children to camps, they can have the confidence that the facilities are safe, operators are prepared, and emergency plans are sufficient and executable — and I’ll add enforced,” said Brandt Dillon, father of Lucy Dillon.
Elsewhere in the Capitol, lawmakers continued work on redistricting.
“We have the votes for it to pass, and as long as the democrats don’t run off to another state or country, I think it will pass,” said Rep. David Spiller, a Republican from Texas.
House Democrats have returned to Austin after a two-week walkout. Now, House Bill 4 was on the floor Wednesday during the Legislature’s second special session.
“This is something we have not seen in modern day democracies. In fact, this is not something that we see in democracies, and I really don't care what your political affiliation is, you should be concerned,” said Rep. Jasmine Crockett, a Democrat from Texas.
The redistricting plan is expected to add five Republican seats in the U.S. House.
The fight has drawn attention outside Texas as well.
“California did not start this redistricting fight. This fight was brought to us,” said Sen. Sabrina Cervantes, a Democrat from California.
“The truth of the matter is if we let Donald Trump get away with rigging elections in Texas and other red states through partisan gerrymandering, we will not have free or fair elections in the United States in the future.”
