Armed with a walking stick, hiking boots and a lot of faith, Robert Brake Jr. is traversing the twisted trees and piles of debris, desperately searching for his parents who have been missing since their cabin washed away on Friday.
A group of search and rescue workers paddle a boat in the Guadalupe River in the aftermath of deadly flooding in Kerr County, Texas, July 7, 2025.
Sergio Flores/Reuters
A “funeral home was just set up initially as a morgue,” he said. “We checked with them hourly, walking up to them, giving my parents information, the pictures. You were hoping not to see anything and hear anything. When you didn’t, you had an ounce of ounce of hope. And you know what? That’s been reassuring.”
Joni Kay Brake and Robert Brake Sr., who have three kids, five grandkids and several great-grandkids, were very active and loved their family tremendously, Brake Jr. said.
Joni Kay Brake and Robert Brake Sr. are missing in the Texas floods.
Robert Brake Jr.
Hope has kept Brake Jr. going as he navigates the difficult terrain around the Guadalupe River, but on Tuesday, he said he woke up and accepted that his parents won’t be coming back.
“The Lord woke me up,” he said. He put me on my feet. He said, ‘Go make a difference. Go make a difference.’ People being kind and for whatever this tragedy has done, it’s what people closer together, really has. And I believe that.”
Crosses hang on a wall with flood marks at Camp Mystic, in the aftermath of deadly flooding in Kerr County, Texas, July 7, 2025.
Sergio Flores/Reuters
Brake said the support from all over the world has kept him going throughout this terrible time and he will continue searching along the river to help other families find their loved ones.
“The devastation, it’s unbelievable. I can’t describe it or put it into words to friends and family,” he said. “My heart goes out to the people that were in the river. I can only imagine how much fear they were experiencing and the doubt they were experiencing.”
-ABC News’ Jaclyn Lee