When 18-year-old Cody Vlasek and his family evacuated their home in Kerr County, Texas, he believed they were saying goodbye to everything they had—especially their beloved dog, who had to be left behind in the chaos of the rising floodwaters.
But what happened next was something straight out of a movie.
A Sudden Escape from Rising Waters
It all started in the middle of the night when the Vlasek family—Cody and his parents—woke up to the sound of heavy rainfall pounding on their roof.
When Cody stepped outside with his dad to check on things, they were shocked to find water already creeping into their backyard.
The river, nearly 30 feet away, had surged toward their home much faster than anyone expected.
They had little time to think. The current was already strong enough to knock them off balance.
Realizing how serious the situation was, Cody shouted that they had to evacuate immediately.
Grabbing what they could, they fled to a neighbor’s house uphill—barely making it out as water reached waist level.
Returning to Rubble and Heartbreak
Once the floodwaters began to recede, the Vlaseks returned to what used to be their home.
But there was no home left. Just rubble, twisted debris, and heartbreak. They had lost everything. And their dog, the family feared, was gone forever.
Cody, a high school senior, struggled to process the loss—not just of his childhood home, but of his furry best friend.
But then, something unexpected happened.
The Sound That Changed Everything
As Cody was picking through the wreckage, he suddenly heard a faint sound. S
cratching. A soft whimper.
“I had to break a window to get in,” he told KENS5, a local news station.
“When I climbed through, I heard it—scratching, a little cry.
I turned the corner and there he was, floating in the washer.”
Against all odds, their dog had survived by taking shelter inside the washing machine—a miracle moment that brought a glimmer of hope in the middle of so much loss.
A Flood That Took Too Many Lives
While the Vlaseks were lucky to have survived, others in Kerr County were not.
The flood, triggered by relentless rainfall, has now claimed more than 129 lives.
At least 160 people are still unaccounted for.
Tragically, among those killed were 27 young girls from Camp Mystic, a Christian summer camp for girls.
Many of the youngest campers—some under the age of 10—had been staying in riverside cabins and couldn’t escape in time.
Questions Mount Over Delayed Warnings
As the search for the missing continues, local officials are facing growing criticism over the lack of timely flood alerts.
Residents and families of victims are demanding answers as to why evacuation orders came so late—if at all.
When President Donald Trump visited the area on Friday with First Lady Melania Trump and other Republican leaders, including Texas Governor Greg Abbott and Senator Ted Cruz, he was pressed on this issue.
When a reporter asked why warnings weren’t sent out sooner, Trump lashed out: “Only a bad person would ask a question like that.
To be honest with you, I don’t know who you are, but only a very evil person would ask a question like that.”
Texas Vows to Keep Searching
Despite the controversy, Governor Abbott said that rescue teams remain committed to locating every missing person.
“We are unrelenting,” he tweeted on Friday night.
“The families deserve nothing less.”