This part of Texas Hill Country is known for flash floods. Why were so many people caught off guard when the river turned violent?

The State Flood Plan, published last year, identified $54 billion in flood mitigation, warning and data needs. The state has awarded around $660 million since the plan was published, with a special legislative session coming soon.

Eight-year-old girls at sleep-away camp, families crammed into recreational vehicles, local residents traveling to or from work. These are some of the victims.

Torrential rain flooded creeks, streams and the Guadalupe River, where the water swelled more than 26 feet in 45 minutes.

A large percentage of people still unaccounted for were probably visiting the area, Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly said.

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.

As the water rises, so does the Kerr County community, especially one man who reunited a brother and sister, swept away in the flood.

The conditions are life threatening and could flood creeks, streams, streets, highways, underpasses and "urban areas," according to the NWS.

Multiple urban search and rescue teams from across the country that responded to the deadly floods in central Texas told CNN they were not deployed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency until at least Monday evening — days after any victim had been found alive.