Central Texas was ravaged with flash floods over the Fourth of July weekend, killing over 100 people, including 28 children. Rescue missions are still occurring for those who have been reported missing.
According to NBC, towns in Kerr County did not trigger flash flood warnings to residents before they could flee the storm. A review of real-time messaging system operated by the National Weather Service (NWS) found that there was no communication from Kerry County officials to NWS staff members.
It is unclear if Kerr County officials were mere monitoring communications from the NWS and acting on them. CNN reports that NWS first sent a public warning at 1:14 am on July 4 and a more urgent flash flood warning was sent several hours later. At one point, the Guadalupe River rose 26 feet in 45 minutes. Kerr County reportedly posted on social media about the flooding, but did not order immediate evacuations.
Digital warning signs may have failed some residents in more remote areas where signal was already spotty. Counselors at Camp Mystic, the summer camp at the epicenter of the flooding, were not allowed to keep their phones at work, so many weren’t able to receive NWS warnings, CNN reports. At least 27 campers and counselors were killed in the flood.
While digital warnings have been welcomed in the new-age of the internet, they have not always been proven to work or be accurate, especially in rural areas. Flood sirens can alert residents of severe weather events without relying on new age technology. Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said that the state would help pay for the alert systems if the city could not afford it.
According to CNN, officials have been alerted to Kerr County’s flood risk since 2016. However, residents questioned where the funding would come from, while others worried about noise levels. Still, in 2017 officials with the county and the Upper Guadalupe River Authority applied for $980,000 in FEMA funds to build a flood warning system, but were denied, CNN reports.
Without federal or state funding, emergency alarm systems did not become a priority. In 2021, it was discussed allocating funds for a flood warning system that included sirens, allotting $50,000 for the system, but plans were never followed through. Earlier this year, officials posted a request for bids on a project to “improve flood warning to the public,” passing a resolution to select a firm for the project in April.
A change.com online petition was created on July 5, urging for the county to implement an outdoor early warning siren system, Austin KXAN reports. Residents of Kerr County will never know if a siren system could have saved lives that night, as they are largely meant to alert people who are outdoors, not in their homes.
As more rain is expected in the area of the weekend, disaster relief efforts will remain in effect. FEMA recommends the follow safety initiatives to help residents stay informed:
Mackenna Moralez is the associate editor of the facilities market and the host of the Facilities in Focus podcast.
