119 confirmed dead in U.S. Texas flooding, death toll to continue surging

HOUSTON, July 9 (Xinhua) -- The July 4 devastating flooding in central Texas has claimed at least 119 lives as of Wednesday morning, with the death toll widely expected to further climb, local authorities said.

Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha confirmed that at least 161 people remain missing in the hardest-hit county, including five girls and a counselor from an all-girls summer camp along the Guadalupe River.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott said Tuesday night that at least 173 people were unaccounted for across the state. He has ordered state flags to be flown at half-staff until sunrise on July 14 to honor the victims.

Meanwhile, three people died after flash floods battered the village of Ruidoso in the central southern state of New Mexico on Tuesday, according to New Mexico officials.

According to the National Weather Service, floods kill an average of 113 people per year in the United States over the past decade, accounting for nearly one-sixth of all weather-related deaths.