Camp Mystic files for bankruptcy nearly a year after deadly Texas floods that killed campers, counselors, and director
Camp Mystic filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization on Wednesday, nearly a year after catastrophic floods killed 25 girls, two teenage counselors, and the director at the all-girls Christian camp in Texas.
In paperwork filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of Texas in Houston, the camp estimated liabilities between $10 million and $50 million, a significantly wider range than previously known. The camp said it has assets between $100,001 and $500,000.
CBS News Texas reviewed the filing, which shows the limited liability corporation behind the camp has not filed prior bankruptcy cases in the last eight years. The filing indicates that funds will be available for distribution to between 1,000 and 5,000 unsecured creditors.
Edward S. Eastland, a member of the family that owns the camp, was listed as the camp's authorized representative in the filing. The corporation behind the camp is represented by a Dallas attorney.
A total of four companies are listed as affiliated entities in the filing:
- Camp Mystic, LLC
- Natural Fountains Properties, Inc.
- Mystic Camps Family Partnership, Ltd.
- Mystic Camps Management, LLC
CBS News Texas has reached out to Camp Mystic for further comment.
Bankruptcy attorney: Liquidation more likely than reorganization
Joyce W. Lindauer, a bankruptcy attorney not involved in the case but who has been following it closely, said the filing is unsurprising given the scale of the camp's legal exposure
"Kind of not a surprise to me that they would file bankruptcy because that is a way for them to deal with a number of the problems they are currently facing," Lindauer said.
Under Chapter 11, Camp Mystic could attempt to reorganize and continue operating - or liquidate entirely.
Lindauer believes liquidation is the more realistic outcome:
"Given the size of the debt and the litigation they were involved in, I would think they would be opting more for a liquidating case, but I don't know," Lindauer said.
She added that restructuring the business may be nearly impossible.
"Given the amount of liability that potentially is here, it would be difficult to restructure this business and continue to operate it," Lindauer said. "Not saying it's impossible, but I think it would be difficult."
The filing states the camp intends to propose either a plan of reorganization or a plan of liquidation.
Families' attorney: Filing is a delay tactic
An attorney representing families of six victims says the bankruptcy is yet another attempt to stall accountability.
"Every step of the way, they've tried to avoid accountability," attorney Sam Taylor told CBS News Texas, calling the bankruptcy "another effort by them to avoid a trial."
Missteps discovered during investigation
The bankruptcy filing comes days after a new investigative report into the failed evacuation of Camp Mystic during the deadly July 2025 floods identified a series of missteps that led to the deaths at the camp. Investigators told a joint Texas House and Senate committee they reached four conclusions in their exhaustive review of what contributed to the deaths of 28 people, including the camp's director.
"Nobody had any instruction whatsoever about what to do in an emergency. Particularly, here we are talking about a flood emergency," state investigator Casey Garrett told lawmakers. "There were no specific assignments given to staff."
Among the findings, investigators said Camp Mystic lacked written emergency plans that complied with state requirements. They also found the camp did not adequately prepare for the storm and did not evacuate in a timely manner despite having ample opportunities.
Investigators further concluded that reunification efforts and incident management were chaotic and had traumatic effects on families.
In total, 28 people -- including 25 campers, two counselors, and camp director Dick Eastland -- were killed in the July 2025 flood.
In April, Texas lawmakers sharply criticized the camp's operators, blasting their evacuation planning ahead of the storm.
Camp Mystic withdrew its application for a summer 2026 camp license after that first public hearing.
Further developments after the flood
Mary Elizabeth Eastland, the camp's chief health officer, saw her nursing license temporarily suspended. A week later, the Texas Board of Nursing said she could practice with a limited license.
According to an agreed order approved May 19, the board found Eastland failed to ensure the camp's emergency nursing manual included adequate emergency planning procedures, failed to contact 911 after campers and staff were reported missing and failed to report the deaths to state authorities within the required 24-hour timeframe. According to the order, this created an unsafe environment that likely contributed to physical, emotional and psychological harm as well as loss of life.
The order also alleges Eastland allowed camp nurses to administer medications under inadequate standing orders between March and July 2025.
Eastland, a registered nurse since 2008 and Camp Mystic's chief health officer for 16 years, neither admitted nor denied the allegations but agreed to disciplinary action.
After the tragedy at Camp Mystic on July 4, when floodwaters swept away campers and staff, state lawmakers approved a new law with various requirements for summer camps to prevent this from happening again. That included installing a fiber-optic internet connection. But State Rep. Wes Virdell, R-Brady, told CBS News Texas that the law has caused obstacles for the camps.
"Only nine out of, I think maybe 300 camps have been approved for a license for this coming summer because of the new legislation," Virdell said. "The legislation is going to cost camps millions of dollars when there are other alternatives that work just as well."
Virdell said the main issue for camps is the requirement to install a fiber-optic internet connection, which is expensive. One of the authors of the legislation, State Sen. Charles Perry, R-Lubbock, told CBS News Texas that camps have complained to him about the cost and availability of materials and labor.
Perry said that last October, he and Rep. Drew Darby, R-San Angelo, wrote to the Department of State Health Services, which oversees licensing for the camps, asking the agency to delay the requirement. Some camps filed suit against the state to block the requirement. Perry said he hopes the judge will agree to do that.
"This needs to get fixed," he said. "Of all the regulations and things we did, I think this is the only one that's causing consternation, causing a challenge to both the department and the camps."
Families sue state over licensing failures
Earlier this year, nine Camp Mystic families sued Texas officials, claiming the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) violated their daughters' "constitutional rights to life and bodily integrity." According to the lawsuit, DSHS licensed Camp Mystic despite its failure to comply with state law requiring youth camps to maintain a written and posted evacuation plan for each building. They allege the camp's emergency instructions directed campers to remain in their cabins during a flood, including those located in designated flood zones along the Guadalupe River.
The agency inspected and licensed the nearly 100-year-old camp two days before the flood that killed 27 campers and counselors, the lawsuit states.
The suit alleges that while officials inspected the camp annually, they knowingly issued a license despite the absence of a legally required evacuation plan.
This is a developing story. CBS News Texas will update this article regularly.