AUSTIN, Texas – A Texas judge on Wednesday refused to completely close Camp Mystic, the tragic epicenter of the Fourth of July floods that inundated the Texas Hill Country last year, but prevented changes to the part of the camp where the deadly flooding occurred.
Judge Maya Guerra Gamble heard evidence in a packed Travis County courtroom on a temporary restraining order and request for injunctive relief filed by Will and CiCi Steward, the parents of 8-year-old Cecilia “Cile” Steward, a camper who died in the flood.
Gamble granted a temporary injunction prohibiting the girls’ summer camp along the Guadalupe River from altering or remodeling any structures where campers were staying during the tragedy.
He also ordered the former Guadalupe grounds where the fatal flooding occurred to be sealed, including the police station, recreation room and main office. However, areas outside of those lands can continue construction.
Twenty-five girls, two counselors and the owner of Camp Mystic died in the historic flood in Kerr County that inundated the camp. Cile’s body has not been recovered.
More than 130 people in the region died in the disaster.
The Stewards, who filed a lawsuit against the camp’s owners and the restraining order last month, had asked that Camp Mystic not reopen this summer to campers and that construction and remodeling be stopped to preserve evidence at the site.
In their filing, the Stewards argued that remodeling and construction is already underway, even as the search for their daughter’s body continues.
“This request for injunctive relief seeks to preserve the status quo and protect material evidence relating to how and why Cile Steward lost his life while in the care of Defendants,” his filing said.
Gamble’s ruling will be in effect while the couple’s lawsuit is pending.
Camp Mystic did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The courtroom was packed Wednesday with relatives of the victims.
Edward Eastland, director of Camp Guadalupe at the time, testified as a defense witness. He told the court that some buildings have since been repaired and remodeled.
When asked about the tragedy, he said the children did not have walkie talkies in their cabins and said the camp had security cameras but no one was watching the feed in the middle of the night when the flooding began.
Brad Beckworth, the Stewards’ attorney, said after the hearing: “Our request for a restraining order was granted in its entirety.”
“The only limitation is how we are going to address the commercial activity on the other side of the field,” he continued. “But to be clear, what the court has ruled is that the Guadalupe River side of Camp Mystic will not reopen anytime soon until we go through the correct evidentiary process toward trial.”
Will Steward praised the judge’s decision, saying, “It was important to know that the judge understood and the court understood that what we are trying to do is preserve the evidence that exists so that we can understand, so that future campers will never be put in a situation like this again.”
Mikal Watts, an attorney representing Camp Mystic and the Eastland family, which owns the camp, said he was “thrilled” with the judge’s decision.
“She agreed that the evidence of the Guadalupe River should be preserved, as we offered… Part of what we are doing is working tonight on structural separation to keep children away from the Guadalupe River while they attend camp this summer at Cypress Lake. We agreed to do that,” he said.
Watts said as of yesterday there were 853 campers registered to attend Mystic’s Cypress Lake location this summer, which he described as separate from the former Guadalupe camp.
In announcing its reopening plans in December, Camp Mystic said it had taken steps to improve safety, including installing flood monitoring units.
Last week, families of nine Camp Mystic flood victims sued the state, alleging it failed to meet a requirement that the camp have an evacuation plan.
Also last week, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick sent a letter urging the commissioner of the Texas Department of State Health Services to deny the camp a license to operate until “all legislative investigations are completed and necessary corrective action is taken.”
In response to Patrick’s letter, Camp Mystic said last week that its Cypress Lake location “complies with all aspects of the state’s new camp safety laws.” He noted that the Cypress Lake site is not adjacent to the Guadalupe River and “did not sustain significant damage from the historic Fourth of July flood.”
