STORY: President Donald Trump on Friday (July 11) defended the state and federal response to deadly flash flooding in Texas as he visited the Hill Country region, where at least 120 people, including dozens of children, died a week ago.

After arriving in Kerr County, Trump, first lady Melania Trump, and Texas Governor Greg Abbott toured an area near the river, receiving a briefing from first responders amid debris left in the wake of the flood.

During a roundtable discussion, Trump praised Abbott and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem for their response, saying they both did an "incredible job."

Search teams on Friday continued combing through muddy debris in central Texas, looking for the dozens still listed as missing. No survivors have been found since the day of the floods.

Heavy rains sent a wall of water down the Guadalupe River early on July 4, causing the deadliest disaster of Trump's nearly six-month term in office. Kerr County officials say more than 160 people remain unaccounted for, although experts note that numbers reported missing after disasters are often inflated.

The dead include at least 36 children, many of whom were campers at the nearly century-old Camp Mystic, an all-girls Christian summer retreat on the river's banks.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

SHOWS: A rescue task force from Nevada was on the ground in Kerrville, Texas on Friday (July 11) to assist in the search for victims from the floods the same day that President Trump visited the site. (9151-USA-WEATHER-TEXAS-MORNING)

KERRVILLE, TEXAS, UNITED STATES (JULY 11, 2025) (REUTERS – Access all)

1. VIEW OF GUADALUPE RIVER/ RUSHING WATERS

2. RESCUE VEHICLE TOWING A BOAT

3. NEVADA TASK FORCE GATHERED IN PARKING LOT

4. CLOSE-UP VIEWS OF TASK FORCE MEMBERS AS THEY PREPARE TO BEGIN MISSION

Texas residents in Kerr County turned out on Friday morning by the side of the road to greet U.S. President Donald Trump's motorcade as he was arriving in central Texas to survey the damage caused by the July 4 flash flooding. (9222-USA-WEATHER-TEXAS-TRUMP_RESIDENTS)

KERRVILLE, TEXAS, UNITED STATES (JULY 11, 2025) (REUTERS - Access all)

5. PEOPLE WITH AMERICAN FLAGS BY SIDE OF ROAD

6. VARIOUS OF GUADALUPE VELLA, 68, FROM SAN ANTONIO WAVING AMERICAN FLAG WITH PRESIDENT DONALD'S TRUMP PHOTO

7. (SOUNDBITE) (English) GUADALUPE VELLA, 68, FROM SAN ANTONIO, SAYING:

"The message is that we know that he's going to help us. We know that he's got our back on whatever's going on and he's going to support us through this whole mess we've got into right now. And that's why we're all getting together, and hopefully everything turns out right, all these bodies are recovered and we keep being blessed and it's going to be a big, big blessing when Donald Trump shows up. Yes, ma'am."

8. AMERICAN FLAG WITH TRUMP PHOTO ON IT

9. (SOUNDBITE) (English) GUADALUPE VELLA, 68, FROM SAN ANTONIO, SAYING: - ON WHETHER FLOOD WARNINGS WERE ADEQUATE

"People knew what was coming. I mean, the warning was out there. It's just how people took it, you know. It is sad. A lot of people don't know the rivers here. It's just something that nobody knew what was coming and you know, things like that happen. It's sad that it happened."

President Donald Trump arrived in Texas on Friday (July 11) to survey the damage caused by flash flooding and to meet with local officials, first responders and relatives of some of the 120 people killed in the July 4 disaster.(9256-USA-WEATHER-TEXAS-TRUMP)

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, UNITED STATES (JULY 11, 2025) (U.S. NETWORK POOL - No use USA)

10. U.S. PRESIDENT, DONALD TRUMP, AND FIRST LADY, MELANIA TRUMP, WALING DOWN THE STEPS OF AIR FORCE ONE/ TRUMPS GREETING OFFICER AND WALKING TOWARDS MARINE ONE

Trump supporters waited for his motorcade to drive by as he toured the area to meet with families, first responders and local and federal officials. (9261-USA-WEATHER-TEXAS-TRUMP_MOTORCADE)

KERRVILLE, TEXAS, UNITED STATES (JULY 11, 2025) (REUTERS - Access all)

11. MOTORCADE DRIVING BY

After arriving in Kerr County, Trump, first lady Melania Trump, and Texas Governor Greg Abbott toured an area near the river, receiving a briefing from first responders amid debris left in the wake of the flood. They later held a round table with federal and loca officials and lawmakers. (9258-USA-WEATHER-TEXAS-TRUMP)

KERRVILLE, TEXAS, UNITED STATES (JULY 11, 2025) (U.S. NETWORK POOL - No use USA)

12. PRESIDENT, DONALD TRUMP, FIRST LADY, MELANIA TRUMP, AND TEXAS GOVERNOR, GREG ABBOTT, LISTENING TO OFFICER NEXT TO A PILE OF DEBRIS

13. TRUMPS AND ABBOTT GREETING OFFICER

14. TRUMPS GREETING SOLDIERS

15. TRUMPS POSING FOR PHOTO WITH SOLDIERS

16. OFFICIALS AND LOCALS DURING ROUNDTABLE

17. (SOUNDBITE) (English) U.S. PRESIDENT, DONALD TRUMP, SAYING:

"The search for the missing continues. The people that are doing it are unbelievable. People that you couldn't get better people than this anywhere. Kristi, right? Anywhere in the world, you couldn't get better people. And they're doing the job like I don't think anybody else could, frankly. And I want to thank them. I want to thank all of these great first responders who raced into very grave danger. We have some people that were incredible. A single Coast Guard rescue crews saved an incredible 169 children at Camp Mystic, 169."

18. LOCALS DURING ROUNDTABLE

19. (SOUNDBITE) (English) U.S. PRESIDENT, DONALD TRUMP, SAYING:

"We're also taking historic action to ensure that such a nightmare never happens again. And we're going to look and see how can a thing like this, they could say it's hundred year, somebody said it's a 500 year event. It doesn't, we're not going to let a thing like this happen again where it can wreak this kind of devastation."

After touring the area Trump and First Lady Melania Trump left the state flying out of at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio on July 11. (9278-USA-WEATHER/TEXAS-TRUMP-DEPARTURE)

SAN ANTONIO TEXAS, UNITED STATES (JULY 11, 2025) (U.S. NETWORK POOL - No use USA)

20. U.S. PRESIDENT, DONALD TRUMP, FIRST LADY, MELANIA TRUMP, WALKING FROM MARINE ONE AND BOARDING AIR FORCE ONE