Flood-related deaths rise to 96 in Kerr County as searches continue

As the massive search for flood victims entered its seventh day, local officials on Thursday said the death toll in Kerr County has risen to 96.

Officials have recovered 96 bodies in Kerr County as of 8 a.m. Thursday, with 60 of those adults and 36 children, said Jonathan Lamb, a spokesman with the Kerrville Police Department.

ALSO READ: How the death toll from the July 4 floods compares to other Texas disasters

Leitha and other state and local officials have said the search for victims will continue until every missing person is accounted for. Gov. Greg Abbott said Tuesday that 161 people could still be missing, and Lamb said on Thursday morning that number has not changed.

Among those still unaccounted for are five children and a counselor from Camp Mystic, a private summer camp for girls in Hunt along the Guadalupe River. Camp officials said this week that 27 campers and counselors died in the flooding.

Lamb said the focus for state and local officials remains on "rescue and reunification" operations. He said there are at least 100 response teams helping with rescue and recovery, and more than 2,100 people have taken part in the search.

The statewide total of flooding deaths has now risen to 119. Along with the 96 bodies recovered in Kerr County, eight have been recovered in neighboring Kendall County related to the same Guadalupe River flooding that claimed the lives in Kerr County. In a separate flooding incident, seven people died in Travis County, four in Williamson County and four in Burnet County, officials said.

Kerr County continues to clean up from the flooding, which inundated hundreds of homes and businesses. The floods caused $18 billion to $22 billion in damage throughout the Hill Country, according to an estimate by AccuWeather.

Lamb said a Federal Emergency Management Agency recovery center has been opened at Kerrville First Baptist Church, at 625 Washington St.

This is a developing story. It will be updated.