By Natalie Brooks | U.S. Daily Ledger | July 16, 2025
In what officials are calling “one of the most extraordinary survival stories in U.S. history,” five of the 27 girls who vanished during the catastrophic Texas floods have been found alive — huddled together inside a narrow crevice in a massive rock formation, miles from their original camp.
The girls, ages 8 to 12, were swept away by raging floodwaters over a week ago. Rescuers had feared the worst. But on Tuesday evening, a search team heard faint knocking sounds near a limestone bluff just outside San Sabo County.
What they found left them speechless.
“It was like a miracle sealed in stone,” said Lt. Caroline Mears of the Texas Search and Rescue. “Five girls, alive, scared but strong — trapped in a crack no wider than a doorway. They were soaking wet, covered in mud… but they made it.”
Even more astonishing was how the girls stayed alive:
A tiny pocket of air, created by the way the rocks had shifted during the flood, allowed them to breathe. And — in an act of unimaginable resilience — the girls used condensation and moss growing inside the crevice to stay hydrated.
One of the girls, speaking softly to paramedics, said:
“We took turns sleeping. We didn’t cry out too loud — just tapped the rock. We thought maybe someone would hear.”
Rescuers say the girls’ ability to ration energy and remain calm likely saved their lives.
Authorities are calling this survival the first recorded case in American history of children enduring over 120 hours in an airtight rock enclosure under post-flood conditions — without food, clean water, or direct access to the outside.
The five girls were airlifted to a children’s trauma center in Austin. Doctors say all five are expected to recover fully.
As the nation watches in awe, the search continues for the remaining 12 girls still unaccounted for. But this miraculous rescue has brought a surge of hope — and a renewed urgency — to find them.
“They didn’t give up on each other,” said one paramedic. “And now, we won’t give up on the rest.”
This is a developing story. Updates to follow.