Former federal officials and outside experts have warned for months that President Donald Trump’s staffing cuts to the National Weather Service could endanger lives.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt later began her briefing on the offensive, calling out those who've questioned whether federal cuts to the NWS impacted staffing levels or forecasting abilities as the tragedy unfolded.

The team deployed around 7 a.m. Friday from Corpus Christi, about 200 miles south of where the Guadalupe River in Kerr County, Texas, had risen from about 3 feet to nearly 30 feet. Floodwaters in the area had swept through and battered several youth camps on the river banks — including Camp Mystic, the summer camp where they were headed.

The death toll from the devastating floods across central Texas surpassed 90 as dozens of people remain missing. In Kerr County, at least 48 adults and 27 children died, according to officials.

The death toll from flash floods that raged through central Texas has topped 80. The chance of life-threatening flooding was still high in central Texas.

The president confirmed the visit to reporters Monday evening, calling the flooding in Central Texas a "terrible event." Mr. Trump said Sunday that he is planning on going to Central Texas. He said he would have gone Sunday but he would be "in their way,

Authorities on Sunday were in a desperate search to find those still missing after historic flash floods swept across central Texas — including 10 children from a beloved all-girls camp — as the death toll rose and forecasters warned of more rain.