Ted Cruz says he left Greece ‘as fast as humanly possible’ after Texas flood: Flight data says otherwise

Sen. Ted Cruz toured one of Greece’s historic sites a day after the Guadalupe River flooded its banks and killed dozens of people in Texas.

While the Texas senator’s spokesperson said Cruz returned home “as fast as humanly possible,” flight data contradicts the claim, according to a Daily Beast report published Monday night.

Cruz landed in Athens on Thursday.

On Friday, more than 24 hours after the river flooded in Texas, the senator, his family and their bodyguard were seen at the Parthenon.

“As he walked past us, I simply said, ‘20 kids dead in Texas and you take a vacation?’” the unnamed observer told the Daily Beast.

“He sort of grunted and walked on,” the witness continued. “His wife shot me a dirty look. Then they continued on with their tour guide.”

Cruz’s communications team claimed the senator got back to Texas “as fast as humanly possible.”

But the Daily Beast reported there were multiple flights from Athens to San Antonio, Texas, on Friday and Saturday.

“While it is not known how many seats were available on each flight, possible options included flights leaving Athens on Saturday morning and landing in San Antonio that evening via Chicago, Atlanta, or Washington, D.C.,” the website reported.

That’s without including chartered flights and other private options available to Cruz.

Flash floods in Texas killed more than 100 people over the Fourth of July holiday weekend and left others still missing, including girls attending a summer camp.

The devastation along the Guadalupe River, outside of San Antonio, has drawn a massive search effort as officials face questions over their preparedness and the speed of their initial actions, the Associated Press reported.

In Kerr County, home to youth camps in the Texas Hill Country, searchers have found the bodies of 84 people, including 28 children, Sheriff Larry Leitha said Monday afternoon. Fatalities in nearby counties brought the total number of deaths as of Monday afternoon to at least 104.

Ten girls and a counselor were still unaccounted for at Camp Mystic, a Christian summer camp along the river.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

 

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