Veterans Voices : Run for the Wall educates Montvale Elementary Students
The Run For The Wall stop at Montvale Elementary was a tradition started off as a friendly gesture by Montvale Elementary Students several years ago as the children on the playground waved when the bikers rolled past the school on Highway 460 turned into something special.The following year, the bikers made it a point to stop at the school to speak to the kids.It has become an annual tradition.
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Chicago Tribune
6 days ago
- Chicago Tribune
Donna Vickroy: The joy of simple things, and defying age in a time of uncertainty
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6 days ago
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Boston Globe
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- Boston Globe
A decade of missed opportunities: Texas couldn't find $1M for flood warning system near camps
Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up People searched along the Guadalupe River on Wednesday for victims. Gerald Herbert/Associated Press Advertisement Previous floods provided warnings A deadly 2015 Memorial Day flood in Kerr County rekindled debate over whether to install a flood monitoring system and sirens to alert the public to evacuate when the river rose to dangerous levels. Some officials, cognizant of a 1987 flood that killed eight people on a church camp bus, thought it was finally time. But the idea soon ran into opposition. Some residents and elected officials opposed the installation of sirens, citing the cost and noise that they feared would result from repeated alarms. County commissioners sought compromise. 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Ashley Landis/Associated Press A failure to act Without the flood monitoring system, the county was left vulnerable when rains pounded the area in the early morning hours of July 4 and the river rapidly rose. 'There wasn't enough fight in them, and there needs to be more fight this time,' said Nicole Wilson, a San Antonio mother who pulled her daughters out of an area camp ahead of the flooding and who launched an online petition calling on Kerr County to install the sirens. 'Whether it's a combination of city, state and federal funding, there simply can't be the answer of 'no' this time.' Local authorities and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott have urged the public not to point fingers after the flooding, which killed at least 120 people and left scores more reported missing. 'I would be willing to talk about it but not yet. It's just too raw right now,' said Glenn Andrew, a former Kerrville city council member who voted in 2017 to pull the city out of the grant proposal for the project. 'My preference is to look forward to the future.' Advertisement A spokesperson for Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said Wednesday that lawmakers, who begin a special session later this month, would approve funding to cover such projects in the future. 'The state will provide emergency warning sirens where needed,' Patrick spokesperson Steven Aranyi wrote in an email. But some anger is starting to boil over. Raymond Howard, a city council member in Ingram, Texas, in Kerr County, said Wednesday it's 'unfathomable' that county officials never took action despite repeatedly talking about it. Damage seen next to the Guadalupe River on Tuesday. Without a flood monitoring system, Kerr County was left vulnerable when rains pounded the area in the early morning hours of July 4. Ashley Landis/Associated Press 'That's just mind-boggling,' he said. 'It's unfathomable that they never worked on it. If it comes down to funding, they're constantly raising taxes on us for other stuff. 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The system outlined in the county's preliminary plan would provide 'mass notifications to citizens about high water levels and flooding conditions throughout Kerr County.' Advertisement At targeted low water crossings within Kerr County, sensors connected to monitoring stations would transmit a signal that would notify local officials and emergency management agencies of the rising water levels. Officials envisioned using that information to alert the public and call their contacts at youth camps and RV parks during emergencies. But after Hurricane Harvey caused record flooding in Houston and other areas of Texas in August 2017, 'funding was distributed to counties that fell under the disaster declaration, which Kerr County was not included on,' Rapaport said. The City of Kerrville's council voted 4-0 to decline to participate in the grant proposal, balking at its planned $50,000 contribution, minutes show. Crystal Byrd, left, cleaned up debris in Hunt on Monday, in the wake of the Kerr County flood. Byrd's home has become a refuge for several who were able to evacuate a gated community across the road. Danielle Villasana/For The Washington Post Texas voters created a new funding source for such projects in 2019, backing a constitutional amendment to create a state flood infrastructure fund with an initial $800 million investment. The Upper Guadalupe River Authority, which manages the watershed in Kerr County, revived the project last year with a $1 million initial request for funding. The Texas Water Development Board, which oversees the fund, offered a $50,000 grant and a $950,000 interest-free loan for the rest of the project. The river authority declined to pursue the funding, saying the terms were not favorable. Foley reported from Iowa City, Iowa; Keller from Albuquerque, New Mexico; and Mustian from Miami. Associated Press reporter Claudia Lauer contributed to this report from Philadelphia.
