The July 4, 2025, floods in Texas left heartbreak across communities. One of the victims, 21-year-old Joyce Catherine Badon, was found dead after being swept away in a flash flood in Hunt. Her mother, Kelleye, shared that Joyce was celebrating the holiday with friends when the flood hit around 4 a.m., trapping them. “They just got washed away,” were Joyce’s final words during a call before the line went dead.
Joyce and three others—Ella Cahill, Reese Manchaca, and Aidan Heartfield—were carried off by floodwaters. Aidan was last heard saying, “I’ve gotta go. I gotta help Ella and Reese.” Joyce and Reese were later confirmed dead; Ella and Aidan remain missing.
In another tragedy, two young girls, 9-year-old Lila Bonner and 8-year-old Eloise Peck, died together at Camp Mystic in Kerr County. They had gone missing with several others. “Eloise was literally friends with everyone,” her mother said. “She had a family who loved her fiercely.”
Lila’s and Eloise’s families, along with many others, are left grieving lives cut short by the storm. As one tribute read, “Rest in peace, sweet girls. You will never be forgotten.”
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