A CNN reporter shared on air how “surreal” it has been for her to cover the devastation at a “magical place” like Camp Mystic after attending the Texas camp herself as a young girl.
Pamela Brown, CNN’s chief investigative correspondent, shared her fond memories of the camp that was ravaged by Friday’s floods during a live broadcast in an emotional, off-the-cuff moment.
A CNN correspondent reflected on her fond memories as a little girl when she was a camper at Camp Mystic. CNN“It’s surreal coming back here 30 years later. I was a 10-year-old little camper here filled with so much hope and joy,” Brown said during a discussion with an anchor.
“I remember the excitement and anticipation of coming to Camp Mystic.”
Aerial map of Camp Mystic in Texas showing flood impact, highlighting senior and junior cabin locations relative to the Guadalupe River. Falon Wriede / NY Post Design
She explained how hard it was to wrap her head around how a river that is the source of such fond memories for her and other former campers could be the source of so much unspeakable tragedy.
“It’s such a magical place, now all these girls — these sweet young campers — who had to evacuate and their families,” she said. “So much innocence has now been lost.”
CNN correspondent Pamela Brown said that with the devastation caused by the flooding, so much innocence has been lost. Pamela Brown/Instagram
CNN correspondent Pamela Brown recounted how she and her fellow campers would look for dinosaur fossils in the Guadalupe River. Pamela Brown/InstagramBrown, along with the press corps from around the country and the world, have descended upon Texas Hill Country after a once-in-a-generation catastrophic flood devastated the area Friday, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake, including Camp Mystic, a historic all-girl Christian camp that catered to Texas’ elite.
Follow The Post’s coverage on the deadly Texas flooding
- Camp Mystic survivors heard screams in the dark as floodwaters hit hours earlier than previously thought
- Camp Mystic co-owner waited 45 minutes to evacuate campers after getting urgent ‘life-threatening’ flash floods alert
- Texas flood volunteers ordered to evacuate as heavy rainfall expected to strike devastated region
- Texas family mourns 8-year-old daughter confirmed dead in Camp Mystic flood disaster
At least five girls from the camp have been confirmed dead — all ages 8 and 9 — and 10 others are still missing.
The death toll from Friday morning’s calamitous flooding rose to at least 80 across Texas on Sunday evening, with 68 of the deaths in Kerr County, where Camp Mystic’s two campuses are located.
Inside a cabin at Camp Mystic, where at least 20 girls went missing after flash flooding in Hunt, Texas, on July 5, 2025. AFP via Getty Images“For me coming back, I’m overwhelmed with emotion and I’m overwhelmed with memories,” Brown said. “I can’t get over looking at those cabins right next to the Guadalupe River, that river was the source of so much joy.”
She and her fellow campers loved to play games in the river.
“There was this thing called The Blob, which was like this inflated balloon-type thing that we would jump on and then the person at the end would jump off into the water and it was so much fun,” she reminisced.
Officials assist with a recovery at Camp Mystic along the Guadalupe River after a flash flood swept through the area, Sunday, July 6, 2025, in Hunt, Texas. APBrown recounted how she and her fellow campers spent much of their time frolicking in the river, and even hunted for dinosaur fossils.
“That’s what we loved. And to think that that same river is the source of this devastation,” she added.
Brown is a multi-award-winning CNN anchor and chief investigative correspondent, who currently anchors “The Situation Room,” according to her bio on the CNN website.
