Days Before Flooding Killed at Least 27 Campers and Counselors, Inspectors Signed Off on Camp’s Disaster Plan

Two days before floodwaters ravaged Camp Mystic in Hunt, Texas  — where at least 27 young girls and counselors died — a Texas inspector approved the camp’s operations and acknowledged that it had a plan in case of emergency.

On Wednesday, July 2, an inspector found the Christian, all-girls camp had a written plan to respond to natural disasters, according to records reviewed by PEOPLE. Volunteers and camp employees were notified of these plans during training sessions, according to the inspection report shared by the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS).

But what the emergency plans entailed is currently unknown. Copies are not kept by DSHS, a spokesperson from the agency tells PEOPLE.

“Camps are responsible for developing their own emergency plan,” Lara Anton, a DSHS spokesperson, shares via email.

“The plans should include disaster, serious accident, epidemic, or fatality. Disaster would include flooding, tornado, etc. DSHS does not approve (or sign off on) the plans or evaluate the plans for effectiveness,” she continues. “The inspector also confirms that the plans are posted in all buildings as required and that the procedures were reviewed with camp staff.”

Camp Mystic did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

A review of Texas Administrative Code shows that camps are required to have plans that include “procedures for emergency shelter and for evacuation of each occupied building and the facility.”

Campers are supposed to be informed of what to do “in the event of fire, disaster, or the need to evacuate,” and emergency procedures are supposed to be reviewed by staff members, who are meant to receive specific assignments during an emergency event and receive training.

Questions are swirling around natural disaster preparedness after Hill Country was devastated by the flooding of the Guadalupe River, which began on Friday, July 4. So far, at least 119 people have died, CNN reported.

In total, 161 people remain missing, including five Camp Mystic campers and one counselor, the Kerr County Sheriff’s Office said in a July 9 Facebook post.

The camp, which was established in 1926, has become a haunting symbol of the destruction wrought by floodwaters. Images of stuffed animals, colorful trunks and the little girls’ belongings show just how much devastation the floodwaters caused when historic levels of rain began to fall in the early hours of the Fourth of July.

Among the dead are two best friends, Lila Bonner and Eloise Peck, both of whom reportedly just recently finished 2nd grade at Bradfield Elementary in Highland Park.

Other victims have been identified as Sarah Marsh, an Alabama girl who recently completed the second grade, 8-year-old twin sisters Hanna and Rebecca Lawrence as well as Janie Hunt, 9, a family member of Kansas City Chiefs owner Clark Hunt.

Renee Smajstrla, 8, was killed in the flood as well. Her uncle, Shawn Salta, confirmed her death in a post on Facebook, writing, “She will forever be living her best life at Camp Mystic.”

The 100-year-old camp has a history of flooding. A former program director, Claudia Sullivan, told NBC News that a flood in 1978 prompted her and other staff members to rush 100 campers to higher elevation in vehicles for the night.

But the most recent flooding has shaken her. “This was unprecedented,” Sullivan told the outlet. “No one expected this.”