Lt. Gov. Patrick calls on DSHS to stop Camp Mystic from operating, demands Eastlands withdraw license application

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick called Wednesday on the Texas Department of State Health Services to immediately stop Camp Mystic from operating under any license this summer — and called directly on the Eastland family to withdraw their pending application and cancel the 2026 season.

Patrick, the state’s second-highest official and the presiding officer of the Texas Senate, made the demand in a Facebook post published Wednesday morning following two days of testimony before the joint General Investigating Committee on the July 4, 2025, flood.

“After two days of heartbreaking testimony, including from the Heaven’s 27 families, who lost their daughters at Camp Mystic, and from investigators, it’s clear that Camp Mystic was totally unprepared, understaffed, complacent, incompetent, and lacking an evacuation plan,” Patrick wrote.

He cited three specific failures: Mary Liz Eastland’s admission under oath that she has still not reported the 27 deaths to DSHS as required by law after 10 months; the camp’s 22-deficiency license renewal application; and testimony showing children in multiple cabins were left to fend for themselves.

“The evidence is overwhelming,” Patrick wrote. “I am now asking DSHS, for the third time, to stop Camp Mystic from operating under any license this summer. What other information does DSHS need to act? No more excuses.”

He then posed a question directly: “How many campers must die for a camp operator to lose their license? Is it 1? 3? 5? 10? Is 27 not enough?”

Patrick also addressed the Eastland family directly, calling on them to withdraw their application voluntarily. “I am calling on Camp Mystic’s operators, the Eastland family, to end this nightmare for Heaven’s 27 and withdraw their license application and announce there will be no camp this summer at Mystic.”

Patrick’s shift — and what Watts said about it

Patrick’s position on Camp Mystic has not always been this pointed. In the days after the flood, he visited the camp and met privately with Edward Eastland for approximately two hours. An alleged text message displayed in recent civil litigation shows Patrick telling Eastland: “Thank you for sharing with me. I know it wasn’t easy for you. You have a new friend in me. I believe you did all you could.”

Camp Mystic attorney Mikal Watts has not been quiet about what he sees as Patrick’s change in position. In a Facebook post that was subsequently deleted and entered into evidence in the Steward family’s civil case, Watts referred to Patrick as “Lt. Gov. Judas.” In court, Watts elaborated: “Judas is kind of a relevant character to Easter, isn’t it. Jesus had a friend in him, didn’t he? Or thought he did, right?”

Watts has also accused Patrick of blocking a flood warning system for Kerr County in 2017 — a claim that connects to the broader argument Watts has made publicly that the disaster resulted from a legislative failure to fund flood detection infrastructure, not from camp negligence.

Patrick’s Wednesday statement resolves a political subplot that had emerged earlier in the week. Rep. Wes Virdell, R-Brady, who represents House District 53 and is one of the most conservative members of the Texas Legislature, posted on Facebook that Patrick had said “something much different” after his post-flood visit to Camp Mystic — and acknowledged that publicly noting the lieutenant governor’s changed position would likely cost Virdell his Senate bills. Patrick’s Wednesday statement confirms the shift explicitly.

The pressure and the loophole

Patrick’s statement carries significant weight beyond its content. DSHS testimony Tuesday revealed a potential loophole under the Administrative Procedure Act that could allow Camp Mystic to continue operating even if the agency moves to deny or revoke its license — because a contested action triggers an appeals process during which the camp could maintain active status. Patrick’s explicit and public call for DSHS to act removes any ambiguity about where the state’s leadership stands and increases the political cost of inaction.

The Eastland family has not yet responded to Patrick’s statement. Watts posted on Facebook Tuesday defending Edward Eastland and arguing the disaster resulted from a legislative failure to fund flood detection infrastructure. Watts has previously stated, “there is no jury in America that will hold Camp Mystic responsible.”

The committee’s final report is expected in May. The Texas Rangers investigation is ongoing. An arbitration hearing in the civil litigation is scheduled for the week of May 13 — two weeks before the camp’s first scheduled session.