Join AL.com journalists and community storytellers for a free, interactive event, “Birmingham Dreams,” July 24.

Featured speakers include AL.com columnist John Archibald, winner of two Pulitzer Prizes, gun violence prevention reporter Alaina Bookman and Birmingham Poet Laureate Salaam Green.

This event, part of AL.com’s ongoing “Beyond the Violence” project, features community storytellers from neighborhoods around Birmingham. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, July 24 at Woodlawn Theater, 5503 1st Avenue North Birmingham, AL 35212.

Sign up for free tickets here.

Green and AL.com senior editor Ruth Serven Smith have spent months talking to Birmingham residents in different neighborhoods about their goals for our community and their ideas for solving its most pressing problems.

Join us to hear neighborhood storytellers describe those hopes firsthand — and learn how we can make them a reality, together.

Read stories from the “Beyond the Violence” series, in partnership with The Birmingham Times.

An eight-year-old girl from Alabama is among the victims of the deadly flood that swept through a summer camp along the Guadalupe River in central Texas early Friday.

Sarah Marsh of Mountain Brook was attending Camp Mystic, a Christian retreat near Hunt in Kerr County.

A relative, Debbie Ford Marsh, confirmed that Sarah was lost in the flood on Facebook around 10 p.m. on Friday night. The news was first reported by the Kerrville Daily Times, which noted that Marsh is her grandmother.

“We will always feel blessed to have had this beautiful spunky ray of light in our lives,” Marsh said in a Facebook post on Saturday morning. “She will live on in our hearts forever!”

ABC 33/40 chief meteorologist James Spann confirmed the news in a Facebook post on Saturday, adding that Marsh was a student at Cherokee Bend Elementary School in Mountain Brook.

Torrential rain and storms that started late Thursday provoked the river to swell from seven feet to 29 feet in less than two hours.

As of Saturday morning, the death toll has reached at least 24 people, and as many as 25 girls are still missing from the camp.

Vice President J.D. Vance offered condolences to the victims of the flood and their families in a post on X Saturday morning.

Montgomery police are investigating a fatal shooting that happened Friday night, WSFA reported.

The shooting happened in the 6000 block of Sherburn Road in south Montgomery.

Police and fire medics responded to the scene about 6:20 p.m. and found a man who had been shot, WSFA said.

The victim, who was not identified, was pronounced dead on the scene.

The University of Montevallo is working to fix a budget shortfall after running a multimillion-dollar deficit for years.

They say that an $8 million deficit at the Alabama college is not due to mismanagement, but is the result of an expensive capital campaign and some unforeseen market changes.

Administrators have canceled underperforming majors, laid off staff and increased tuition for the first time in seven years.

“In a span of the last 10 years, the university’s done about $81 million worth of capital improvements,” DeAnna Smith, chief financial officer, told AL.com. She served from 2008 to 2016, left to pursue a doctorate degree, then returned in January.

Smith said much of the capital improvements at the small public college south of Birmingham “were absolutely needed.”

The board of trustees approved $5 million in February 2022 for an underground electrical and high voltage project, a system that runs the campus’ entire power grid. Smith said it is still in progress.

AL.com reviewed board minutes from 2020 through 2025. During this time, Montevallo never failed any independent audits and, within a few months of the hiring of CFO Susan Hayes, had balanced budgets. Board chair Todd Strange noted in August 2020 that the budget hadn’t been balanced in five years.

There’s no indication of any panic or handwringing about the numbers, even though U.S. Department of Education financial reports show a deficit of $12 million for the 2021-22 fiscal year.

However, the university foundation saw a 10% decrease in investments in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The foundation’s balance dropped from $56.4 million in early 2022 to $49.5 million in early 2023. On top of that, Montevallo’s COVID Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund ended in 2022.

Despite these challenges, the board approved 3% salary increases for faculty and staff in August 2023 and added new athletic teams.

At the August 2023 meeting, Hayes reported to the board an increase in revenues and expenses.

“We are expecting a slight increase in housing and tuition fees,” Hayes said. “With the markets getting better our investments were able to see a sizable gain for our investment return this year and that should continue into next year.”

In November 2024, then president John Stewart told the board that the “primary goal this year will be rebuilding cash reserves after ambitious building projects and investing in the campus.” At this board meeting, Stewart’s contract was renewed. Stewart would later step down on May 5.

The positive financial outlook in these comments does not correspond with the available Department of Education’s financial reports. AL.com has requested operating budgets for the last five years.

Smith said Stewart “was very humble with our campus.”

“He took the time to meet with all faculty, with all staff. He has certainly shared his apologies for the situation that we’re in. I think he’s handled it as best as could be. He’s been very upfront and said it happened on my watch.”

Smith said 29 staff members were laid off this year and, so far, two academic programs were terminated: the education of Deaf and hard of hearing and world languages.

In November 2022, the board approved $3.4 million for two apartment complexes. Both have been renovated, according to Smith, and are at capacity. A new nursing program has garnered attention since its announcement in May 2024.

With increasing demand in Montevallo’s nursing program and rent from two new off-campus apartment complexes, Smith expects revenue to increase and a balanced budget for the 2025-2026 fiscal year.

Terry Roberson has been named interim president of the college.

A Collinsville man died after a single-vehicle crash in DeKalb County late Friday night, police said.

The man, Derrick G. Barkley, 48, was driving a 2018 Chevrolet Colorado on DeKalb County 30 when the vehicle left the road, struck a fence and utility pole and turned over. He was not wearing a seat belt, and was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

The crash occurred at about 11:55 p.m. near DeKalb County 84, three miles northwest of Collinsville.

State troopers with the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency’s Highway Patrol Division are investigating the crash.

The rosters for the summer-league versions of the NBA include five players who helped Auburn reach the Final Four of last season’s NCAA tournament and four who helped Alabama advance to the East Regional Final in that event.

Summer-league play for the NBA tips off on Saturday and continues for the following 15 days.

Auburn’s Johni Broome was a second-round draft pick of the Philadelphia 76ers on June 25. Alabama’s Mark Sears and Auburn’s Dylan Cardwell and Miles Kelly have signed two-way contracts, which will allow their teams to shuttle them between the NBA roster and their NBA Gatorade League affiliate as needed.

The other players, like most on the summer-league courts, are facing long odds to stick in the NBA.

But not all the summer-league players are trying to break into professional basketball. Some are hoping to return to the NBA.

Former Alabama guard Josh Primo is in the latter group after the former first-round draft pick did not play in the 2024-25 season. The Chicago Bulls have Primo on their roster for the NBA 2K26 Summer League, which plays from July 10-20 in Las Vegas with every NBA team represented.

Tipping off on Saturday are two four-team, three-day circuits. The California Classic Summer League in San Francisco features the Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat and San Antonio Spurs. The Salt Lake City Summer League will include the debut of Broome in a Philadelphia uniform at 8 p.m. CDT Saturday against the Utah Jazz. ESPN will televise the game. Also playing in the Salt Lake City Summer League are the Memphis Grizzlies and Oklahoma City Thunder.

Players from Alabama high schools and colleges on NBA summer-league rosters include:

• Forward Brooks Barnhizer (Alma Bryant), Oklahoma City Thunder. Barnhizer joined the Thunder from Northwestern in the second round of the 2025 NBA Draft.
• Forward Johni Broome (Auburn), Philadelphia 76ers. Broome joined the 76ers in the second round of the 2025 NBA Draft.
• Forward Kobe Brown (Lee-Huntsville), Los Angeles Clippers. Brown played for the Clippers of the NBA and San Diego Clippers of the NBA G League last season.
• Center Dylan Cardwell (Auburn), Sacramento Kings. Cardwell signed a two-way contract with the Kings as a rookie free agent.
• Guard Aaron Estrada (Alabama), Memphis Grizzlies. Estrada played for the Motor City Cruise of the NBA G League last season.
• Center Trey Jemison (Hoover, UAB), Los Angeles Lakers. Jemison played for the New Orleans Pelicans and Lakers of the NBA and South Bay Lakers of the NBA G League last season.
• Guard Chaney Johnson (Thompson, Auburn), Cleveland Cavaliers. Johnson signed with the Cavaliers as a rookie free agent.
• Guard Denver Jones (Buckhorn, Auburn), Cleveland Cavaliers. Jones signed with the Cavaliers as a rookie free agent.
• Guard Miles Kelly (Auburn), Dallas Mavericks. Kelly signed a two-way contract with the Mavericks as a rookie free agent.
• Guard Kira Lewis Jr. (Hazel Green, Alabama), Miami Heat. Lewis played for the Capital City Go-Go of the NBA G League last season.
• Guard TJ Madlock (Alabama State), Detroit Pistons. Madlock signed with the Pistons as a rookie free agent.
• Forward Grant Nelson (Alabama), Brooklyn Nets. Nelson signed with the Nets as a rookie free agent.
• Center Clifford Omoruyi (Alabama), Toronto Raptors. Omoruyi signed with the Raptors as a rookie free agent.
• Guard Josh Primo (Alabama), Chicago Bulls. Primo played for the Los Angeles Clippers of the NBA and the Ontario Clippers of the NBA G League during the 2023-24 season.
• Forward Alex Reese (Pelham, Alabama), Philadelphia 76ers. Reese played for the Oklahoma City Thunder and 76ers in the NBA and the Rip City Remix and Delaware Blue Coats of the NBA G League last season.
• Guard Mark Sears (Muscle Shoals, Alabama), Milwaukee Bucks. Sears signed a two-way contract with the Bucks as a rookie free agent.
• Guard Jaden Shackelford (Alabama), Golden State Warriors. Shackelford played for the Valley Suns of the NBA G League last season.
• Forward Jaylin Williams (Auburn), Dallas Mavericks. Williams played for the Grand Rapids Gold of the NBA G League last season. Williams played on Friday for the Winnipeg Sea Bears, as he has in every game for the team in the 2025 Canadian Elite Basketball League season.
• Guard Chris Youngblood (Alabama), Oklahoma City Thunder. Youngblood signed with the Thunder as a rookie free agent.

Primo sustained a stress fracture in the navicular bone of his left ankle in April 2024. The injury required surgery. The Bulls signed Primo for their NBA G League affiliate last offseason, but he never took the court for the Windy City Bulls in the 2024-25 campaign.

After Primo averaged 8.1 points and 3.4 rebounds in 30 games in his only season at Alabama, the Spurs selected the 6-foot-6 18-year-old at No. 12 in the 2021 NBA Draft. As a rookie, Primo averaged 5.8 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 50 games, including 16 starts, for San Antonio.

The Spurs stunned the NBA when they waived Primo four games into his second season on Oct. 28, 2022, without providing a reason.

In November 2022, lawsuits were filed against Primo and the Spurs. In announcing the lawsuits, Houston attorney Tony Buzbee alleged Primo had exposed himself to Dr. Hillary Cauthen on multiple occasions when she worked for San Antonio. When Cauthen brought the matter to the attention of the NBA team’s management, she was assured it would be addressed, Buzbee said, but instead she was marginalized and, ultimately, lost her position as a consulting psychologist with the Spurs. Cauthen said because San Antonio’s management failed to address the matter, other women had to endure what she did.

The lawsuits were resolved without going to court about two weeks after they were filed.

On Dec. 8, 2023, the Bexar County (Texas) District Attorney’s Office announced the end of its criminal investigation of Primo and said he would not be charged with indecent exposure due to insufficient evidence.

Primo was out of basketball until signing a two-way contract with the Los Angeles Clippers on Sept. 29, 2023. On the same day that Primo signed with the Clippers, the NBA announced it had suspended the guard for four games.

Primo played in two games for Los Angeles — on Dec. 16 and March 1. He totaled two points and one rebound during 10 minutes on the court. Primo spent most of the 2023-24 season with the Ontario Clippers. In 35 NBA G League games, he averaged 16.3 points, 3.7 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.1 steals.

The Clippers waived Primo on April 13, 2024, after he sustained the ankle injury.

Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on X at @AMarkG1.

The third tropical storm of 2025 has formed in the Atlantic, and it’s expected to hit the United States.

The National Hurricane Center named Tropical Storm Chantal on Saturday morning. Forecasters expect it to track to the north and make landfall soon in South Carolina, where a tropical storm warning is now in effect.

Chantal is in the western Atlantic and no threat to the Alabama coast, or areas inland.

As of 7 a.m. CDT Saturday, Tropical Storm Chantal was located about 150 miles south-southeast of Charleston, S.C., and was tracking to the north at 2 mph.

Chantal had sustained winds of 40 mph, making it a minimal tropical storm. The hurricane center expects Chantal to strengthen some before moving onshore, but it is not expected to become a hurricane.

A tropical storm warning is in effect from the South Santee River, S.C., to Cape Fear, N.C.

A tropical storm watch stretches along the coast from Edisto Beach, S.C., to the South Santee River.

The hurricane center said those elsewhere along the southeast coast of the United States should also keep an eye on Chantal.

Chantal is expected to track slowly to the north and then northwest and move onshore in South Carolina by Sunday morning.

Tropical storm conditions will be possible in South Carolina starting Saturday night, forecasters said.

The area along the coast could also get 2 to 4 inches of rain, with isolated areas getting up to 6 inches, which could cause flash flooding.

A storm surge of 1-3 feet will also be possible along parts of the South and North Carolina coasts from Chantal.

Also a concern: The storm could churn up the near-shore waters along the Southeast U.S. coast and cause deadly rip currents far from where it makes landfall.

Chantal formed about a month ahead of schedule, according to Colorado State University hurricane expert Dr. Philip Klotzbach:

Chantal is the only area of concern in the tropical Atlantic (which includes the Gulf and Caribbean) as of Saturday.

There have been two other tropical storms so far this hurricane season, and both were weak and short-lived.

Andrea, the first storm of 2025, formed on June 24 in the central Atlantic and didn’t affect land. The second storm, Barry, formed in the southern Gulf (or Bay of Campeche) but weakened to a tropical depression before moving onshore in eastern Mexico on June 29.

This season NOAA is forecasting between 17-19 named storms (tropical storms and hurricanes), six to 10 hurricanes and three to five major hurricanes (Category 3 or stronger storms).

According to NOAA an average Atlantic hurricane season has 14 named storms, seven hurricanes and three major hurricanes.

The 2025 WNBA season has a slew of games this weekend. To wrap up the slate of games, an exciting matchup between the defending champion New York Liberty and Seattle Storm is set to take place.

The Liberty basically picked up where they left off last season, behind their big three of Sabrina Ionescu, Breanna Stewart and Jonquel Jones. New York’s new contributor in Natasha Cloud has been a force to be reckoned with on the defensive end. Marine Johannes has also remained a three-point specialist.

The Storm are also having a solid season with double-digit wins already. Seattle’s core of veterans in Nneka Ogwumike, Skylar Diggins, Gabby Williams and Erica Wheeler have gotten them to this point.

Fans looking to tune into the Storm vs Liberty game can do so on Fubo, who’s offering a free trial to new subscribers.

Here’s everything you need to know before the Storm and Liberty tipoff:

When: Sunday, July 6, 2025

Where: Barclays Center, Brooklyn, NY

Time: 1 p.m. E.T.

Fans looking to tune into the Storm vs Liberty game can do so on Fubo, who’s offering a free trial to new subscribers.

KERRVILLE, Texas (AP) — At least 24 people were killed and a frantic search continued overnight for many others missing in the Texas Hill Country, including more than 20 from a girls camp, after a storm unleashed nearly a foot of rain and sent floodwaters spilling out of the Guadalupe River.

The destructive force of the fast-rising waters just before dawn Friday washed out homes and swept away vehicles.

There were hundreds of rescues around Kerr County, including at least 167 by helicopter, authorities said. The total number of missing was not known but the sheriff said between 23 and 25 of them were girls who had been attending Camp Mystic, a Christian summer camp along the river.

On social media, parents and families posted desperate pleas for information about loved ones caught in the flood zone.

“The camp was completely destroyed,” said Elinor Lester, 13, one of hundreds of campers at Camp Mystic. “A helicopter landed and started taking people away. It was really scary.”

She said a raging storm woke up her cabin around 1:30 a.m. Friday, and when rescuers arrived, they tied a rope for the girls to hold as the children in her cabin walked across a bridge with floodwaters whipping around the calves and knees.

The flooding in the middle of the night on the Fourth of July holiday caught many residents, campers and officials by surprise. Officials defended their preparations for severe weather and their response but said they had not expected such an intense downpour that was, in effect, the equivalent of months’ worth of rain for the area.

One National Weather Service forecast this week had called for only between three and six inches of rain, said Nim Kidd, the chief of the Texas Division of Emergency Management.

“It did not predict the amount of rain that we saw,” he said.

At a news conference late Friday, Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha said 24 people had been confirmed killed. Authorities said 237 people had been rescued so far.

Helicopters, drones used in frantic search for missing

A river gauge at Hunt recorded a 22-foot rise in about two hours, according to Bob Fogarty, meteorologist with the National Weather Service’s Austin/San Antonio office. The gauge failed after recording a level of 29-1/2 feet.

“The water’s moving so fast, you’re not going to recognize how bad it is until it’s on top of you,” Fogarty said.

On the Kerr County sheriff’s office Facebook page, people posted pictures of loved ones and begged for help finding them.

At least 400 people were on the ground helping in the response, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said. Nine rescue teams, 14 helicopters and 12 drones were being used, with some people being rescued from trees.

‘Pitch black wall of death’

In Ingram, Erin Burgess woke to thunder and rain at 3:30 a.m. Just 20 minutes later, water was pouring into her home directly across from the river, she said. She described an agonizing hour clinging to a tree and waiting for the water to recede enough so they could walk up the hill to a neighbor’s home.

“My son and I floated to a tree where we hung onto it, and my boyfriend and my dog floated away. He was lost for a while, but we found them,” she said.

Of her 19-year-old son, Burgess said: “Thankfully he’s over 6 feet tall. That’s the only thing that saved me, was hanging on to him.”

Matthew Stone, 44, of Kerrville, said police came knocking on doors at 5:30 a.m. but that he had received no warning on his phone.

“We got no emergency alert. There was nothing,” Stone said. Then “a pitch black wall of death.”

‘I was scared to death’

At a reunification center set up in Ingram, families cried and cheered as loved ones got off vehicles loaded with evacuees. Two soldiers carried an older woman who could not get down a ladder. Behind her, a woman in a soiled T-shirt and shorts clutched a small white dog.

Later, a girl in a white “Camp Mystic” T-shirt and white socks stood in a puddle, sobbing in her mother’s arms.

Barry Adelman, 54, said water pushed everyone in his three-story house into the attic, including his 94-year-old grandmother and 9-year-old grandson. The water started coming through the attic floor before finally receding.

“I was horrified,” he said. “I was having to look at my grandson in the face and tell him everything was going to be OK, but inside I was scared to death.”

‘No one knew this kind of flood was coming’

The forecast had called for rain, with a flood watch upgraded to a warning overnight for at least 30,000 people. But totals in some places exceeded expectations, Fogarty said.

Patrick noted that the potential for heavy rain and flooding covered a large area.

“Everything was done to give them a heads up that you could have heavy rain, and we’re not exactly sure where it’s going to land,” Patrick said. “Obviously as it got dark last night, we got into the wee morning of the hours, that’s when the storm started to zero in.”

Asked about how people were notified in Kerr County so that they could get to safety, Judge Rob Kelly, the county’s chief elected official, said: “We do not have a warning system.”

When reporters pushed on why more precautions weren’t taken, Kelly said: “Rest assured, no one knew this kind of flood was coming.”

Popular tourism area prone to flooding

The area is known as “flash flood alley” because of the hills’ thin layer of soil, said Austin Dickson, CEO of the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country, which was collecting donations to help nonprofits responding to the disaster.

“When it rains, water doesn’t soak into the soil,” Dickson said. “It rushes down the hill.”

River tourism industry is a key part of the Hill Country economy. Well-known, century-old summer camps bring in kids from all over the country, Dickson said.

“It’s generally a very tranquil river with really beautiful clear blue water that people have been attracted to for generations,” Dickson said.

——

By HANNAH FINGERHUT and JIM VERTUNO, The Associated Press

England plays against France in the 2025 UEFA Women’s EURO group stage today. The matchup will begin at 2 p.m. CT on FOX. Fans can watch this game for free online by using the free trials offered by DirecTV and Fubo TV.

Today’s match is the first game for both of these teams at the tournament. With this in mind, both teams will try to earn three points for their country this afternoon.

In order to win this group stage match, England will need a great performance from their star player Agnes Beever-Jones. She leads the team with four goals in the Nations League, so she will look to continue her offensive success this afternoon.

Lucy Bronze will be another key player to watch for England today, as she leads the team with three assists in the Nations League.

In order to win today’s game, France will need to rely on their star player Sandy Baltimore. She leads the team with five goals in the Nations League, which highlights her offensive prowess. If Baltimore continues to play at a high level this afternoon, then France will be a difficult team to beat.

Fans can watch the 2025 UEFA Women’s EURO group stage game for free online by using the free trials offered by DirecTV and Fubo TV.