A retired nurse, her son and a family friend say they were lucky to survive last week's flash floods in Texas that killed more than 100 people, including many summer campers.

Virginia Hollis is one of the girls missing from Camp Mystic, according to a social media post from Bregman. She was staying in Cabin Twins 2 when floodwaters from the Guadalupe rushed through the campgrounds. Ellen is a missing Camp Mystic camper, according to her family.

With more than 170 still missing, communities must reconcile how to pick up the pieces around a waterway that remains both a wellspring and a looming menace.

The Texas Hill Country has been notorious for flash floods caused by the Guadalupe River. Here's why the area is called "Flash Flood Alley."

In what experts call "Flash Flood Alley," the terrain reacts quickly to rainfall steep slopes, rocky ground, and narrow riverbeds leave little time for warning.

Q: Is it true that if President Donald Trump hadn’t defunded the National Weather Service, the death toll in the Texas flooding would have been far lower or nonexistent? A: The Trump administration did not defund the NWS but did reduce the staff by 600 people.

In other words, we keep playing a game of chance with forces indifferent to us—until we are finally reminded of the cost of losing.

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) owns property on the Guadalupe River in Texas that was affected by the deadly July 4 floods. His family members are safe.