According to local authorities, at least 109 people died on July 4 and 5, most of which were swept up in floodwaters from campgrounds along the Guadalupe River. That’s just shy of the 118 deaths reported as a result of Hurricane Rita in 2005.

The death toll from the July Fourth flash flood that ravaged a swath of central Texas Hill Country rose on Tuesday to at least 109, many of them children, as search teams pressed on through mounds of mud-encrusted debris looking for scores of people still missing.

Search-and-rescue teams continued to wade into swollen rivers and use heavy equipment to untangle trees as part of the massive search for missing people.

Experts say there was a number of factors that contributed to the tragedy including the extreme weather, the location of the holiday homes and timing. There was a large supply of moisture in the atmosphere from a tropical storm that had caused flooding in Mexico and then tracked north as it died out.

Social media users are spreading false claims that flash floods in Texas that killed more than 100 people over the Fourth of July holiday weekend were caused by weather modification