Kerrville mayor says he wasn't aware of state resources that Gov. Abbott said were in place ahead of flooding
'The state was aware that there was a possible serious flooding event days in advance and pre-positioned assets and resources and personnel,' Abbott said at a Tuesday press conference. 'We originally pre-positioned those assets, personnel and resources on Wednesday. Then, when greater clarity was discerned on Wednesday, we moved them closer and made sure we had adequate supplies going into Friday. We were ready.'
The Texas Division of Emergency Management 'activated' state emergency response resources across West Texas and the Hill Country on July 2, according to a TDEM press release. TDEM cited 'heavy rainfall with the potential to cause flash flooding' and encouraged Texans to prepare for flooded roads and monitor weather forecasts.
The state agency listed a number of state agencies and Texas A&M services 'available to support local flood response operations,' such as rescue boat teams, helicopters, and personnel to monitor road conditions.
Kerrville Mayor Joe Herring said during a press conference on Wednesday that he wasn't aware of any resources or personnel sent to his area, although the TDEM had people in Kerrville after the floods struck his city.
'I haven't seen the governor's remarks ... I don't know what resources TDEM had in place at that time,' Herring said.
The National Weather Service sent out its first flash flood warning to residents at 1:14 a.m. Friday, about three hours and 21 minutes before they received the first reports of flooding along the Guadalupe River, which runs through Kerrville.
NWS officials said they communicated directly with local officials the night of the flood, but Herring said he wasn't aware of the flooding until around 5:30 a.m. when the city manager called him. By that time, floodwaters were already meters high and parts of Highway 39 were flooded, limiting evacuation efforts.
Five days after the July Fourth flood, more people remain missing than have been recovered.
Search and rescue teams are looking for 161 missing people in Kerr County, which includes Kerrville, and the death toll there remains at 95, of which 36 were children. The total number of victims across the Hill Country stands at 119.
At least seven people died in Travis County, eight in Kendall County, five in Burnet County, three in Williamson County and one in Tom Green County.
Kerrville, located in part of the Hill Country known as 'Flash Flood Alley,' has discussed efforts to install flood warning systems. But when the flood came early Friday morning, such systems weren't in place.
Herring was asked at Wednesday's press conference why that's the case, he said 'I wasn't in office during those discussions, and frankly, I'm more focused on the future than the past.'
The flood is already among the deadliest natural disasters in Texas history, and it is currently the second deadliest flood, after a 1921 flood in San Antonio that killed 215 people. The Hill Country flood death toll is higher than the total number of flood-related deaths recorded across the country last year, along with the year before.
Among those killed were 27 campers and counselors from Camp Mystic, a summertime Christian retreat for generations of Texas girls. The camp's director, Richard 'Dick' Eastland, also died. Five campers and a counselor were among the missing Tuesday.
Before Tuesday, only 25 people were reported missing across the region. A local government official said Monday it was still 'a lot' after days of search and rescue operations. Those searching said they have been dealing with prank calls, false tips and rugged terrain across a roughly 60-mile area.
Abbott said that state House and Senate committees will form as early as this week to investigate 'ways to address this' ahead of the special session set to start on July 21. Abbott did not provide further details into what the committees will be investigating, but responded to a reporter's question about where to place blame as 'the word choice of losers.'
'The losing teams are the ones that try to point out who's to blame,' Abbott said. "The championship teams are the ones that say, 'Don't worry about it, man, we got this.''
'The way winners talk is not to point fingers, they talk about solutions. What Texas is all about is solutions,' he later added.
President Donald Trump is also planning to visit the region on Friday to tour the damage, which one estimate placed between $18 billion and $22 billion in destruction and economic losses.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Washington Post
23 minutes ago
- Washington Post
System over Florida has potential to develop into tropical depression, weather service says
ORLANDO, Fla. — A drenching weather system moving across Florida on Tuesday wasn't even a tropical anything but has the potential to develop into a tropical depression as it moves into the northeastern and northern Gulf later in the week, according to National Weather Service forecasters. The system would be called Tropical Storm Dexter if it became a named storm, but it was expected to be far less lethal than the namesake vigilante serial killer of the Showtime crime drama, 'Dexter' which was set in Florida.
Associated Press
30 minutes ago
- Associated Press
System over Florida has potential to develop into tropical depression, weather service says
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — A drenching weather system moving across Florida on Tuesday wasn't even a tropical anything but has the potential to develop into a tropical depression as it moves into the northeastern and northern Gulf later in the week, according to National Weather Service forecasters. The system would be called Tropical Storm Dexter if it became a named storm, but it was expected to be far less lethal than the namesake vigilante serial killer of the Showtime crime drama, 'Dexter' which was set in Florida. The National Weather Service said the area of low pressure off Florida's east coast was becoming better defined and moving west across the Florida Peninsula on Tuesday. The system was drenching the peninsula with heavy rains, and the weather service warned of the potential for flash flooding in parts of the state through the middle of the week. 'Environmental conditions appear generally favorable for additional development, and a tropical depression could form by the middle to latter part of this week as the system moves across the northeastern and north-central Gulf,' the National Weather Service said. How many storms have we had so far? Just six weeks into the start of the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season, three tropical storms have developed — Andrea, Barry and Chantal. Dexter would be the fourth if it develops that way. Andrea dissipated in the Atlantic after forming at sea last month. Barry dumped rain on eastern Mexico at the end of last month. Chantal made landfall in South Carolina last week, and its remnants caused flooding in North Carolina that killed an 83-year-old woman when her car was swept off a rural road. Floodwaters also forced dozens of people to flee their homes in North Carolina. How many Atlantic storms are predicted this season? The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in May forecast 13 to 19 named storms, with six to 10 becoming hurricanes and three to five reaching major status with winds of more than 110 mph (177 kph). A normal season has 14 named storms, seven of which strengthen to hurricanes and three power up further to major hurricanes. Colorado State University researchers last month estimated there would be 17 named storms this year, with nine of them becoming hurricanes. Of the predicted hurricanes, the researchers said four could become major hurricanes. 'Weather modification' reports required in Florida With hurricane season on Floridians' minds, state Attorney General James Uthmeier this week sent a letter to the state's airports telling them that they must report the presence of any aircraft used for the purposes of 'weather modification' starting in October to comply with a new Florida law. After flash floods killed scores of Texas residents over the Fourth of July holiday weekend, social media users spread false claims that the devastation was caused by weather modification. Many pointed to one process in particular, blaming cloud seeding performed on July 2 by a California-based company for the tragedy. But officials say there is no evidence that the floods are the result of cloud seeding and experts agree that cloud seeding would not result in precipitation of this magnitude. Uthmeier said at a news conference on Tuesday that 'this stuff sounds pretty scary to me.' 'My letter was to put airports on notice that they do have obligations and could face penalties, including some criminal penalties, if they don't comply,' Uthmeier said. ___ Follow Mike Schneider on the social platform Bluesky: @
Associated Press
40 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Warming rivers prompt fishing restrictions in western Montana
Nearly a dozen rivers in western Montana and a handful of rivers inside the borders of Yellowstone National Park are under restrictions or closures as biologists seek to reduce angling-related sources of fish mortality. On July 9, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks announced that portions of Upper Rock Creek, the Clark Fork River, the Bitterroot River and the entirety of Silver Bow Creek are closed to angling after 2 p.m. to protect fish during the hottest hours of the day. The previous day, hoot owl restrictions were announced for sections of the Ruby, Big Hole, Beaverhead and Smith rivers and for the entirety of the Jefferson River. The Sun River and the Madison River, perhaps the state's most popular angling destination, were placed under hoot owl closures particularly early this year — July 2 for the Sun River and June 19 for the Madison River above Hebgen Lake. FWP initiates hoot owl closures when river temperatures reach 73 degrees for three consecutive days and uses angler pressure and flow-based criteria when considering full closures. Trout are particularly susceptible to disease spread and other sources of mortality from late July through late August, when meager flows, rising temperatures and low dissolved oxygen levels converge. Water temperatures above 77 degrees can be lethal to trout. On July 11, Yellowstone National Park initiated full fishing closures to protect aquatic ecosystems inside its boundaries. The Madison, Firehole and Gibbon rivers and their tributaries are closed to all fishing. Park officials consider closing rivers inside its border to fishing when water temperatures hit the 68-degree mark and will revisit the closures when those temperatures cool and flows return to 'more typical summer conditions.' Additional closures may be coming, park officials noted. The announcements come about a month after FWP hosted a virtual town hall to alert the angling public to rapidly declining streamflows across much of the state. Biologists attribute diminishing streamflows to the loss of much of the state's near-average wintertime snowpack in May. 'As things continue to drop … we'll continue to work with water users on where we can find conservation measures to keep as much water as we can in the river,' Region 3 Fisheries Manager Mike Duncan said at the June 11 meeting. Conditions are shaping up to be very similar to 2021, he added. That year, Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte issued a drought-related disaster declaration on July 1 and more than 15 rivers were subject to some form of angling restriction or closure by mid-August. Other FWP biologists observed that several reservoirs in the state never filled this spring and cautioned anglers and fly-fishing guides to prepare for limited access to reservoir boat ramps at places like the Tiber and Gibson reservoirs. As of July 14, approximately 20 rivers in western Montana were within the 10th percentile for low flows, including blue-ribbon fisheries such as the Big Hole, Blackfoot, Madison and Missouri rivers as well as the Clark Fork and one of its largest tributaries — Rock Creek. The Dearborn River stream gauge near Craig, which has 55 years of records, was sitting at an all-time low, producing just 16 cubic feet per second of flow. Rivers across the state are experiencing near-record-low flows with additional challenges expected. In a follow-up conversation with Montana Free Press on Monday, Duncan noted that water quantity and fish health are closely linked. 'When we have water, almost all of these fisheries respond favorably,' Duncan said, going on to describe suboptimal flows as one of the 'major limiting factors' in overall trout population trends. Duncan added that additional restrictions and closures could be announced as rivers around the state continue to dwindle and heat up. FWP's Current Restrictions and Closures page is the best source of information for most of the rivers in the state. Yellowstone National Park notices angling closures inside its borders on the Plan Your Visit section of its website. About one-third of the state is in moderate or severe drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. On Wednesday, the Governor's Drought and Water Supply Advisory Committee will meet in Helena and virtually to discuss current conditions and drought mitigation measures. ___ This story was originally published by Montana Free Press and distributed through a partnership with The Associated Press.
