(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump toured the devastation left by flash flooding in central Texas amid growing questions about how local officials responded to the crisis as well as questions about the federal response — including the fate of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Trump’s visit on Friday came a week after heavy rainfall caused the Guadalupe River in Kerr County to rise 26 feet in less than an hour, killing at least 121, including dozens of children at the nearby Christian summer camp, Camp Mystic.

“The first lady and I are here in Texas to express the love and support and the anguish of our entire nation in the aftermath of this really horrific and deadly flood,” Trump said as he spoke at a roundtable event with first responders and local officials.

“We mourn for every single life that was swept away in the flood, and we pray for the families that are left behind,” the president added. “It’s amazing, the incredible spirit from those families.”

The search for more than 170 people still missing continues with more than 2,100 responders on the ground in Texas from local, state and federal agencies.

Meanwhile, local officials are under scrutiny about what steps were taken to adequately warn people and how long it took for authorities to take action based on escalating weather and other alerts.

Trump, notably, hasn’t engaged in similar criticism about how the crisis was handled — as he has done in the case of other disasters.

“Nobody has any idea how and why a thing like this could happen,” Trump said on Friday.

Trump was asked for his response to those who say the warning alerts didn’t go out in time and that more people could have been saved.

“Well, I think everyone did an incredible job under the circumstances,” Trump said. “I just have admiration for the job that everybody did. There’s just admiration.”

Trump went on to criticize the reporter for asking the question: “Only an evil person would ask a question like that,” he pushed back.

“I think this has been heroism. This has been incredible. Really, the job you’ve all done,” Trump added. “It’s easy to sit back and say, ‘Oh, what could have happened here or there, maybe we could have done something differently.’ This was a thing … that’s happened before.”

Trump later added, “Two words: Unity and competence. If you were to ask me two words that I’ve seen here.”

It’s a marked contrast to how Trump has reacted in the past, including to the California wildfires earlier this year, where he blasted California’s Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom and other local Democratic officials.

Some of the hardest-hit areas of central Texas, including Kerr County, are areas of strong Republican support that voted for Trump in the 2024 election.

Trump approved a major disaster declaration for Texas earlier this week. On Friday, it was expanded to include more areas affected by the floods.

Trump, instead, has largely focused on his relationship with Gov. Gregg Abbott — a Republican and strong ally of the president.

Trump and Abbott met with first responders on the scene on Friday. Abbott earlier Friday said the federal government updated Trump’s disaster declaration for the state to include more counties.

“There has been extraordinary collaboration with the state and the federal government to make sure that we address Texans’ needs as quickly as possible through disaster assistance programs,” Abbott said in a press release. “The State of Texas will continue to work with our federal and local partners to provide impacted Texans with the support they need to heal and recover.”

The White House has pushed back heavily on criticism of the administration’s cuts to the National Weather Service, which led to some to question if staffing levels or forecasting abilities were impacted.

“Blaming President Trump for these floods is a depraved lie, and it serves no purpose during this time of national mourning,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said from the briefing room podium on Monday.

Trump’s also avoided answering questions on whether he is still aiming to phase out FEMA.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, discussed the federal response to the floods during a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday.

“We as a federal government don’t manage these disasters, the state does,” Noem contended. “We come in and support them. And that’s exactly what we did here in this situation. FEMA went to an enhanced level immediately. But as soon as you signed the major disaster declaration, we were able to get them resources and dollars right away, just like you envisioned through state lot grants to help them with cleanup. And we’re still there in presence.”

Later in the week, though, Noem went after FEMA during the Biden and other previous administrations — alleging the agency has suffered from “gross mismanagement and negligence.”

“The list of famous failures is staggering,” Noem claimed in comments to the FEMA Advisory Council, a task force designed to recommend reforms to the agency, including possible dismantlement of the agency as it exists today. Trump appointed Abbott as a new member to the group back in April.

Acting FEMA Administrator David Richardson had yet to visit the affected areas in Texas as of Thursday afternoon.

ABC News’ Luke Barr and Kelsey Walsh contributed to this report.

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