Fact Check: Did Texas sheriff vow to get green cards for Mexican flood rescuers who saved his family?

KERRVILLE, TEXAS: The devastating flash floods in Kerr County, Texas, on July 4, caused massive devastation, killing more than 130 people, including a few girls from the all-Christian girls camp, Camp Mystic.

Now, a week later, a rumor circulated online claiming that a Kerr County Sheriff named Larry L Leitha said he would apply for green cards for a Mexican rescue team that helped "save the lives of his daughter and grandkids".

But is there any truth to this rumor? Let's find out below.

Claim: Kerr County sheriff said he would apply for green cards for Mexican rescue team

Following the floods on July 4 in Central Texas, a rumor circulated across the social media platform X claiming Kerr County Sheriff Larry L Leitha said he would apply for green cards for the Mexican rescue team.

An X user wrote, "Kerr county sheriff changes his mind about Mexicans after they save the lives of his daughter and grandkids". The post also attached a video backing the claim.

Meanwhile, another X user added, "Maybe, just maybe, all is not lost… Kerr County Sheriff Leda—best known for targeting immigrants—just announced he’s applying for green cards for the Mexican rescue team that saved his family."

Similarly, another person wrote, "Wow! Just WOW! Sheriff Larry Ledas' family was saved by the brave Mexicans who came to aid the people in the flood! I think it was an eye-opener for him!"

Moreover, several such posts were shared by many other X users on the social media platform.

False: No credible evidence to back viral claim

The claims made in the online rumor are false, as there are no news reports that say Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha said that he is applying for green cards for a Mexican rescue team that saved his family, fact-checking outlet PolitiFact reported.

The fact-checking outlet added that there were no instances where he made any such statements.

Moreover, the spelling of the sheriff's name was wrong in the posts, where the users mentioned Leitha and Leda.

Furthermore, the Kerr County Sheriff’s Office website also showed no information backing the claim. Similarly, there were no news reports saying that Leitha’s family was affected by the floods.

Additionally, Hive Moderation, a program that detects whether a clip was AI-generated, revealed that 95 percent of the audio in the video was likely to be AI-generated.

There is also no evidence or official government statements proving that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum deployed rescuers to Texas.

Texas flash flood death toll crosses 130

More than 130 people are reportedly dead after the devastating flash floods in the Texas Hill Country that began early on July 4.

Meanwhile, the number of missing persons stands at 101 as search operations are ongoing in Kerr County.

Kerr County was the hardest hit amid the flooding, with 107 confirmed deaths, including 37 children.

Moreover, Heavy rain moved into the search area of the Guadalupe River, forcing search and recovery operations to stop and then restart, per officials.