The deadly floods that struck Texas on the Fourth of July caught local officials off guard as the torrential rains caused the Guadalupe River to overflow in minutes.

As hope for finding survivors dims, questions swirl around whether Camp Mystic's emergency plan was adequate. Texas doesn't approve or keep copies of such plans; camps are required to show only that they have plans in place.

Videos shot by a nurse at Camp Mystic documented the emotional journey as campers sang to comfort each other while traveling to a reunification center in

A disaster plan for Camp Mystic was approved by Texas inspectors just days before devastating flooding killed more than 20 people at the Christian all-girls summer camp, according to records

The images from Camp Mystic's "before," still featured on its website, are so familiar. Photos of smiling girls paddling canoes or riding horseback, swimming in a lake or playing tennis, bring back strong memories for any of us who went to camp, worked at camp, or sent our children off to camp.

In the early hours of Independence Day, rain pelted sleeping communities in central Texas. No one knew yet how devastating the storm would become.

Lisa Miller says she and her husband Nicholas were on a beach in France celebrating their anniversary when they first heard that there had been “some flooding” at the camp, which is located on the banks of the Guadalupe River. But Miller, a former counselor and camper, tells PEOPLE she initially didn’t think much of it.

A teenager that managed to survive the deadly floods that killed 27 members of her Texas summer camp over the weekend has recalled the terrifying precautions she was forced to take during the initial storm.