Texas lawmakers urge each other to donate in bipartisan flood relief campaign
KERR COUNTY, Texas - A pair of Texas lawmakers are challenging their fellow House members to support relief efforts in Central Texas through a bipartisan campaign to raise funds after devastating flooding killed dozens over the weekend.
The effort is fronted by Republican Rep. Jared Patterson and Democratic Rep. Joe Moody.
In a post on X Saturday, Patterson called for every House member to donate $1,000 to the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country or a similar cause with the goal of reaching $150,000.
What they're saying:
"Tragedy isn't partisan & neither is helping our fellow Texans," Moody said in his post. "There are hurts that money can't fix, but this is one part of easing what burdens we can."
READ MORE: Texas flooding: How you can help people in Kerrville
On Sunday morning, other lawmakers were starting to rise to the challenge put down by Patterson and Moody.
"Glad to join this effort spearheaded by @JaredLPatterson & @moodyforelpaso," Rep. Jeff Leach wrote on X. "The absolute least we can do…"
"Done. Texans helping Texans," Houston Rep. Lacey Hull wrote.
Kerr County flooding
At least 43 people were killed in Kerr County as rapidly rising river levels along the Guadalupe River swept away homes and vehicles Friday.
Kerr County officials said Saturday that 28 adults and 15 children have been recovered.
While they have not given an estimate on the number of people believed to be missing, 27 girls are known to be missing from Camp Mystic, a girls' Christian camp located along the banks of the river in Hunt, Texas.
Rescue efforts have been around the clock since Friday, with officials saying more than 850 people have been rescued.
Live Updates | Austin area flooding: At least 6 dead, search efforts continue
Flash flood watches are in effect for most of the Austin-area on Sunday, while crews work to try to find those who went missing in this weekend's flooding.
Central Texas was hit with another round of heavy rains and flooding on Saturday in Travis and Burnet counties.
Officials in Travis County said at least four people were dead as a result of flooding there and at least two people were killed in Burnet County, according to officials.
The Source: Information in this article comes from posts made on social media by Jared Patterson and Joe Moody. Other comments come from their respective social media accounts. Information on flooding in Central Texas comes from officials in Kerr, Travis and Burnet counties and previous FOX 7 reporting.