Camp Mystic Criminal Inquiry: Texas Ranger Seeks Apple iCloud Data After Deadly Flood

A Texas Ranger has applied for a warrant to access executive director Tweety Eastland's Apple account. The 2025 flood killed 28 people, including 25 girls aged 8–10.

Texas Ranger Targets iCloud Records of Camp Mystic Director in Flood Death Investigation

A Texas Ranger has filed an affidavit asking a judge to grant access to the Apple iCloud account of Camp Mystic executive director Willetta "Tweety" Eastland, as part of a criminal investigation into the July 4, 2025, flood that killed 28 people at the Kerr County camp, lubbockonline.com reports.

Ranger Brant C. Johnston's affidavit seeks communications, location data, photos, backups and other records from Eastland's Apple account covering July 3–4, 2025. Johnston stated the data could help investigators determine what camp leadership knew about the flood threat, how they communicated, and what decisions were made before and during the disaster.

The filing identifies several offenses that investigators believe may have been committed by Camp Mystic, LLC — including manslaughter. Those offenses reflect the scope of the inquiry and are not findings that the camp or its leaders committed a crime.

What the affidavit alleges

According to the affidavit, Camp Mystic did not have an adequate written evacuation plan, emergency training and responsibilities were insufficient, and evacuation efforts were not carried out quickly enough. Johnston presented those assertions as part of the basis for seeking the warrant.

The timeline outlined in the affidavit shows that on July 2, 2025, weather forecasts began signaling heavy rain in the Texas Hill Country over the coming days, prompting state officials to activate emergency response resources. At 1:18 p.m. on July 3, the National Weather Service issued a flood watch for the area, with activities at Camp Mystic continuing as normal. Around 1 a.m. on July 4, the service issued a flash flood warning covering the camp's location on the Guadalupe River.

Twenty-five girls aged 8 to 10, two 18-year-old camp counselors and the camp's co-executive director, Dick Eastland, were swept away in the middle of the night while attempting to evacuate to higher ground. In total, more than 130 people died during the July 4 floods across the broader Texas Hill Country region.

The body of one of the youngest victims, Cecilia "Cile" Steward, had not been recovered more than a year after the disaster.

Camp attempts to reopen, then files for bankruptcy

Camp Mystic — an all-girl summer camp located in Kerr County, roughly 80 miles northwest of San Antonio — attempted to reopen in the summer months following the flood but announced it would not move forward after public backlash. The Eastland family, owners of the camp, subsequently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, with court documents showing total debts exceeding $10 million.

Attorneys representing the Eastland family and several families of flood victims did not respond to requests for comment prior to publication.

The Texas Rangers and the Texas Department of State Health Services are continuing their parallel investigations into the events at the camp.

Source: NYT US News