They clung to trees. They crawled out of windows and floated on mattresses. And they survived to tell the harrowing story of the catastrophic flooding that struck central Texas over the weekend and killed dozens,

“Oh my God, we’re floating,” Ruffin Boyett realized. The campers had to make a quick decision. “The flood started getting bigger,” Piers Boyett said. “We have bunk beds in our cabin, and (the water) was going to the top bunk.

A search for Texas flood survivors intensified as Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued a disaster declaration for nearly two dozen Texas counties.

Julian Ryan’s final words to his mother, as floodwaters quickly engulfed their trailer home, were simply, “I love you.”

A July Fourth weekend deluge in Texas caused catastrophic flash flooding that has killed more than 80 people. Camp Mystic in Kerr County says Monday morning that it is “grieving the loss” of 27 campers and counselors as the search continues for victims of the disaster.