Kerrville, Texas, faced a nightmare over the Fourth of July weekend when flash floods claimed 137 lives across the state, 108 in Kerr County alone. Now, amid the grief, a city official’s crude jab at Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has sparked outrage.
According to Daily Mail, Kerrville City Manager Dalton Rice texted a colleague on July 5, calling Noem “basically homeland Barbie” just hours after sharing a press conference stage with her. This petty slight, revealed through a records release, comes as the town reels from a disaster that exposed glaring failures in local preparedness.
The floods struck with brutal suddenness on July 4, wiping out celebrations planned at Louise Hays Park and catching leaders flat-footed. Texts between Rice and Mayor Joe Herring Jr. on July 3 show them focused on holiday events, oblivious to the looming catastrophe.
The scale of the tragedy is staggering, with 27 campers and counselors perishing at Camp Mystic on the Guadalupe River, 15 of them in a single cabin. Records show Herring texting Rice for updates at 10:43 a.m. on July 4, only to get a vague “everything is still unconfirmed” in response.
Local emergency response crumbled under the pressure, as the National Weather Service issued a flash flood warning at 1:14 a.m., hours before the river surged over 30 feet. Yet, Kerrville’s fire department didn’t call off-duty personnel until 8:55 a.m., long after dozens had already died.
Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha admitted Emergency Management Coordinator W.B. “Dub” Thomas was “at home asleep” when the disaster hit. Leitha’s promise to take a “hard look” at the response feels like too little, too late for a community in mourning.
Rice’s flippant remark about Noem, prompted by a staffer’s text asking, “Just saw you met Homeland Barbi, how is she?!?!?!,” landed like a slap to those expecting serious leadership. His reply, “Beahahaha basically homeland Barbie,” reveals a focus on cheap shots over accountability.
Noem, who took office as DHS Secretary earlier this year, has faced this mocking nickname before, but the timing of Rice’s comment couldn’t be worse. While families grieve, a city manager’s juvenile jab distracts from the urgent need to address systemic failures.
Rice hasn’t responded to requests for comment on the exchange, leaving the public to wonder if he grasps the gravity of his words. In a moment crying out for unity, this kind of petty snark only deepens the sense of betrayal.
The records paint a damning picture of Kerrville’s unreadiness, with city councilors blindsided by the floods’ ferocity. Councilwoman Delayne Sigerman’s text, “Whoever prayed for this should pray for cease fire in Israel,” reflects the shock, if not the focus, of local leaders.
Councilwoman Brenda Hughes added, “Ugh!!! Not what we needed today,” capturing the helpless frustration as the disaster unfolded. But frustration won’t bring back the lives lost or erase the image of leaders scrambling after the fact.
Even as Tropical Storm Barry’s path was tracked two days earlier, mobilizing emergency crews, key officials remained disengaged until the worst had passed. This isn’t just bad luck; it’s a breakdown of responsibility at the highest levels.
The floods have left Kerrville and Texas scarred, with families mourning and communities questioning how such a catastrophe was mishandled. Pointing fingers at Noem with childish nicknames solves nothing when the real issue is local officials asleep at the wheel.
Sheriff Leitha’s pledge to review Thomas’s performance must extend to every layer of leadership, including Rice’s conduct. Texans deserve accountability, not distractions, as they rebuild from a tragedy that could have been mitigated with better planning.
This isn’t about political games or who gets the last laugh in a text thread. It’s about ensuring that 137 souls didn’t die in vain, and that Kerrville never again faces such loss unprepared.
