Mystic Alerts Act heads to president to sign

The flood swept 139 people to their deaths in the early morning hours of July 4 in the Texas Hill Country in multiple counties. The majority were killed in Kerr County, who didn’t receive emergency alerts on their phones at all or in enough time to evacuate. County and city officials also failed to issue warnings, authorities learned at state legislative hearings, prompting a series of legislative reforms, The Center Square reported.

To address the issue of emergency alert system failures, U.S. Sens. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Jon Ossoff, D-Georgia, filed the Mystic Alerts Act in the Senate. U.S. Rep. August Pfluger, R-Texas, filed it in the House. The bill unanimously passed the House in April, The Center Square reported.

The four-page bill modernizes the national emergency alert infrastructure by integrating satellite networks into the Wireless Emergency Alert (WEA) system. The alert system is voluntary. 

The bill requires each commercial mobile service provider that voluntarily elects to transmit emergency alerts to notify the Federal Communications Commission of their plans to transmit emergency alerts by satellite to their mobile subscribers or users. If the providers choose not to transmit emergency alerts by satellite, they must notify new and existing subscribers and users. They must also provide a consumer choice to opt out.

Cornyn said the bill addresses technology shortfalls and “honors the memory of those lost by ensuring Texans and all Americans can receive wireless emergency alerts on their mobile devices via satellite even when disaster strikes.” 

Pfluger said the bill “will ensure that Americans in rural areas receive life-saving alerts when disaster strikes and traditional networks fail. This marks a crucial step in updating emergency preparedness nationwide,” he said. His two daughters were at Camp Mystic during the flood and survived. 

President Donald Trump is expected to sign the bill into law. 

The bill heads to his desk as multiple wrongful death lawsuits against the camp, and its owners, members of the Easland family, continue. 

The camp continues to deny culpability for the girls’ deaths. However, during court hearings, at least two of the Eastlands testified under oath that they didn’t prioritize rescuing the youngest 8-year-old campers housed closest to the river. 

Edward Eastland testified to prioritizing moving canoes instead of 8-year-olds, The Center Square reported. 

In a Texas Rangers affidavit released this month, it mentions camp nurse Mary Liz Eastland testifying in April that she abandoned the children. It also points to her not reporting the girls’ deaths to the state in compliance with state law for nearly 10 months. At state legislative hearings,  lawmakers expressed outrage, calling on her to comply with the law. The state nursing board also partially suspended her license. 

This month, Texas Ranger Brant Johnson executed search warrants for phone records and other information of Eastland family members in an ongoing criminal investigation. One affidavit states that it was Johnson’s belief that Camp Mystic, LLC committed the offenses of manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, injury to a child, abandoning and endangering a child and deadly conduct.

The Texas Rangers investigation began in March. Since then, Johnston said he conducted numerous interviews with the camp’s operators, agents and high managerial agents, as well as witnesses and flood victim families.

However, several Camp Mystic owners and operators refused to cooperate or be interviewed, he said, including Edward Eastland, Mary Liz Eastland, Richard Eastland J., Cathryn “Catie” Eastland, Besty Althaus, and Glenn Juenke, according to the affidavit.

The Eastlands and Camp Mystic didn’t respond to requests for comment about the affidavit allegations or the search warrants. 

A state legislative report identified areas where the camp wasn’t in compliance with state law related to emergency plans, didn’t adequately prepare for the storm despite having access to weather updates, and reunification efforts “were chaotic with traumatic effects for families.” 

The state also mandated that the camp remain closed. Not soon after, it filed for bankruptcy.

A judge also ordered that the camp not tear down the remaining cabins where some of the girls died to preserve evidence as state investigations continued.