Camp Mystic Families Sue Over Deadly Floods, Claim Gross Negligence
Several families of Camp Mystic victims who died in the July 4 floods along the Guadalupe River in Texas have filed a state lawsuit against the camp, its owners, and several related entities.
The lawsuit accuses the camp of negligence, gross negligence, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and liability based on inviting the victims onto the camp property then breaching its duty of care to them.
Plaintiffs include the families of Anna Margaret Bellows, Lila Bonner, Chloe Childress, Molly DeWitt, Katherine Ferruzzo, Lainey Landry, and Blakely McCrory. A total of 27 campers and counselors died at Camp Mystic.
They are seeking actual damages, including for pain and suffering, mental anguish, funeral and counseling expenses, along with exemplary damages for gross negligence.
“We carry the memory of our daughter in everything we do,” Ryan DeWitt, father of Molly, said in a press statement.
“This legal step is one of honoring her, and we believe that truth and justice are essential to finding peace — not only for our family, but for every family affected. We trust that through this process, light will be shed on what happened, and our hope is that justice will pave the way for prevention and much-needed safety reform.”
The lawsuit asserts that Camp Mystic operators Dick and Willetta Eastland did not take “reasonable and required precautions to ensure the safety of children and counselors invited to their camps.” As a result, 25 campers and 2 counselors tragically died, the lawsuit says.
The Camp Mystic property sits in the known “Flash Flood Alley.” Despite this knowledge, the lawsuit claims the owners of the for-profit camp chose to locate cabins in flood zones and did not have sufficient plans or training for evacuating the children.
Instead of evacuating campers on the night of July 4 when “life threatening flash flooding” was approaching, the lawsuit asserts the camp directed its groundskeeper to evacuate camp equipment.
Camp Mystic “simply ignored the unmistakable safety threat to its campers and counselors until this tragedy was unavoidable. And 27 young girls lost their lives,” the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit also attempts to “pierce the corporate veil” of camp ownership in order to hold the individual Eastland family liable for the claims in the lawsuit.
Camp Mystic is legally owned by a limited liability company, and the land on which it sits is owned by Natural Fountains Properties, Inc. Richard and Willetta Eastland are listed on the filings of both of those business entities, the court documents state.
“These various entities should be disregarded and their corporate forms deemed not separate,” the lawsuit states. “Allowing them to maintain the legal fiction of separate entities would promote injustice and evade duties and accountability.”
“Our clients have filed this lawsuit to seek accountability and truth. Camp Mystic failed at its primary job to keep its campers and counselors safe, and young girls died as a result,” Paul Yetter, attorney for the families, said about the lawsuit.
“This action is about transparency, responsibility and ensuring no other family experiences what these parents will now suffer the rest of their lives.”
This article was originally published by The Roys Report.
Kim Roberts is a freelance writer who holds a Juris Doctorate with honors from Baylor University and an undergraduate degree in government from Angelo State University. She has three young adult children who were home schooled and is happily married to her husband of 28 years.