The Guadalupe River’s sudden surge over the July 4th weekend left devastation in its wake, swallowing homes and lives in minutes. Among the victims was 21-year-old Joyce Badon, who sent a chilling final text to her family as floodwaters engulfed the house where she and three friends were staying.
Torrential rains transformed the river into a monstrous force, rising as high as a two-story building in under an hour. At least 107 people lost their lives, with many still unaccounted for. Joyce, Ella Cahill, Reese Manchaca, and Aiden Heartfield were at a riverside farmhouse when the disaster struck.
Aiden’s father was on the phone with the group when the waters rushed in. “The house is gone,” he heard before the call abruptly ended. Joyce’s mother, Kellye, shared on Facebook how Aiden had desperately tried to help his friends before being swept away.
Search teams, including volunteers and grieving families, scoured the area. Joyce’s father, Ty, made a grim discovery while searching—a young boy’s body tangled in debris. Days later, Joyce’s remains were found, followed by Reese’s. Ella and Aiden remain missing.
Joyce’s final message—”We’re being washed away”—haunts her loved ones. Her mother posted a photo of a rainbow over their home, a bittersweet reminder that “all is well with her soul.”
