Pope Leo XIV on Sunday voiced his sympathies for the families whose lives have been upended by the flooding in Texas’s Hill Country, which left about 80 dead – many of them children – and others missing.
After reciting Angelus prayers at the Vatican, the American-born pontiff remarked in English: “I would like to express sincere condolences to all the families who have lost loved ones, in particular their daughters who were in a summer camp in the disaster caused by flooding of the Guadalupe River in Texas.
“We pray for them.”
The worldwide Roman Catholic church leader’s comments were notable in that they addressed what is the deadliest natural disaster in his home country since he became the first US-born pope ever in May.
They were also ecumenical in the sense that the girls’ summer camp to which he referred is a Christian – though not specifically Catholic – institution.
Communities along the Guadalupe River were overwhelmed early Friday after torrential rain triggered flash flooding. The river rose 26ft (8 meters) in 45 minutes after 1.8tn gallons of rain fell over a region including Kerr county, Texas.
Most of those reported dead amid the flooding were in Kerr county. And many were in attendance at Camp Mystic, which over its 99-year history has hosted the loved ones of some of Texas’s political elite.
Former US first lady Laura Bush was a camp counselor there. Past Camp Mystic attendees included the daughters of former US president Lyndon B Johnson and Texas governor John Connally.
In a statement, Bush and her husband, former US president George W Bush, described being “heartbroken by the loss of the life and the agony so many are feeling”.
“Those who have lost their precious children are facing a grief no parents should ever know,” it added. “We know our words cannot help, but we believe the prayers of so many Americans will.”
The Bushes’ statement also extended gratitude to the emergency responders and volunteers who were searching for those who remained missing as of Sunday, including at Camp Mystic.
Leo, whose birth name was Robert Prevost, grew up in Chicago and was ordained a priest in 1982. He later became the worldwide leader of the Catholic religious order colloquially known as the Augustinian; led a diocese in Peru, of which he is also a citizen; and was made a cardinal by Pope Francis in September 2023.
The 69-year-old headed the Vatican entity in charge of selecting new bishops globally before his fellow cardinals elected him to succeed Francis, who died in April.
Shortly after his condolences Sunday for the victims of the deadly flooding in Texas, Leo arrived at the papal summer retreat of Castel Gandolfo to start a six-week vacation, his first break since his 8 May election led to a whirlwind period of introductory audiences, outings and Holy Year celebrations.
Associated Press contributed reporting