‘We are better than this': Lawmakers address flood response

AUSTIN (KXAN) — With much than 100 radical dormant successful Kerr County, including young campers, and 2 radical inactive missing, Texas authorities lawmakers convened Wednesday to code what went incorrect and find solutions.

“We are amended than this,” said Rep. Joe Moody, D-El Paso. “We’ve mislaid a batch successful this. And it could person been amended – some before, during and aft – we cognize that. And that’s not a blasted game. That’s accountability.”

For the archetypal clip this peculiar session, the Texas House and Senate Committees connected Disaster Preparedness met for a uncommon associated hearing. Outside the chamber, determination was choler from immoderate residents impacted by the Fourth of July flooding.

“There should person been an evacuation aboriginal successful the day,” said Joseph Shopp. “Not 2 o’clock successful the greeting … this was a implicit failure.”

‘0 to 200 mph’

Two days earlier the disaster, connected July 2, the Texas Division of Emergency Management says it activated the state’s exigency effect sending resources – including a rescue vessel to Kerr and Tom Green counties – anticipating what it called “heavy rainfall with the imaginable to origin flash flooding crossed West Texas and the Hill Country.”

“We knew we were going into a vacation weekend,” TDEM Chief Nim Kidd told lawmakers. “We knew that we needed to guarantee resources were disposable from those section governments that we would privation to basal up for h2o teams, for hunt and rescue teams, for aesculapian teams, if they were needed.”

He said the “area of concern” was 35,000 quadrate miles crossed Texas.

“The forecast for those 44 counties [of concern] successful that country was, again, 1 to 3 inches of rain,” Kidd told lawmakers. He said that was relayed to 468 section authorities participants successful a July 3 upwind telephone that Kerrville’s politician antecedently said helium did not person an invitation to join.

The severity of the tempest caught everyone by surprise, Kidd said, highlighting a summary of alerts from the National Weather Service offices successful Austin/San Antonio and San Angelo from July 3 into the aboriginal greeting hours of July 4:

• 3:20 p.m.: NWS Austin/San Antonio said dense rains imaginable particularly occidental Hill Country. Chances of rainfall alteration Friday.

• 6:56 p.m.: NWS Austin/San Antonio said showers expanding crossed Hill Country expanded done the evening.

• 7:37 p.m.: Flash flood ticker successful effect for Hill Country. Rains volition alteration for July 4 but isolated showers whitethorn continue.

• 8:21 p.m.: Flash flood ticker for Bexar, Gillespie, Kendall, Llano. Advisories for Mason, McCulloch and San Saba counties.

• 8:54 p.m.: NWS Austin/San Antonio reported 1-3 inches of rain, 5-7 inches little apt crossed the flood ticker area.

• 9:30 p.m.: NWS Austin/San Antonio reported pockets of dense rainfall successful Kendall County headed towards Gillespie and Blanco counties; 1-2 inches of rainfall person fallen wrong the past 3 hours and much rainfall connected the way.

• 11:17 p.m.: NWS Austin/San Antonio reported pockets of rainfall crossed Hill Country. Flash flood ticker remains successful effect until 7 a.m. advising to ‘turn around, don’t drown.’

• 1:06 a.m.: NWS Austin/San Antonio reported precise dense rainfall successful Bandera, Kerr and Gillespie counties; 2-3 inches of rainfall per hour.

• 1:14 a.m.: First flash flood informing issued from Ingram and Hunt until 4:15 a.m.; 1-2 inches of rainfall person fallen, expected 2-3 inches of rainfall per hour, 1-2 further inches expected. Flash flood ongoing oregon expected.

• 1:32 a.m.: Flash flood informing includes 13 counties: Bandera, Bexar, Blanco, Brunet, Edwards, Gillespie, Kendall, Kerr, Kinney, Llano, Medina, Real and Uvalde; 1-3 inches of rainfall likely, 5-7 inches imaginable crossed the flood area.

• 2:37 a.m.: Flash flood ticker expanded until 1 p.m.; 1-3 inches of rainfall expected successful Hill Country, 5-7 inches possible. Excessive runoff whitethorn effect successful flooding of low-lying areas, rivers, creeks and low-water crossings.

• 3:08 a.m.: “Very dangerous” flash flood lawsuit southbound cardinal Kerr County; 3-7 inches of rainfall successful past 2-3 hours. Flash flood warning. ‘Turn around, don’t drown,’ again advised.

• 3:19 a.m.: Guadalupe River successful Hunt is astatine 11 feet, expected to crest astatine 16.6 feet.

• 3:33 a.m.: Flash flood informing for the Guadalupe River successful Hunt and Kerr and Bandera counties until 7 a.m.

• 4 a.m.: Guadalupe River successful Hunt is astatine 19.4 feet, expected to crest astatine 23.8 feet.

• 4:23 a.m.: “This is simply a flash flood emergency.” Five-to-10 inches of rainfall expected implicit the adjacent 3-6 hours.

About 30 minutes later, Kidd received connection that radical were trapped connected their roofs.

“We cognize what happened aft that,” helium said.

“We’re truly going to person to person an extended treatment … with the National Weather Service astir these benignant of alerts and the velocity astatine which they came out,” Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, told lawmakers. Afterward, Bettencourt’s X relationship reiterated online what helium mentioned during the hearing.

“We’re not adjacent going from zero to 60 [mph],” helium told lawmakers, “we’re going from zero to 200 miles an hr successful 3 hours and 17 minutes.”

‘A amended strategy for warning’

The treatment besides touched connected initial confusion, highlighted successful Kerr County dispatch audio antecedently obtained by KXAN’s investigative team. In the audio, astatine 4:23 a.m., an Ingram unpaid firefighter is heard telling a Kerr County sheriff dispatcher: “The Guadalupe Schumacher motion is underwater connected State Highway 39. Is determination immoderate mode we tin nonstop a CodeRED retired to our Hunt residents, asking them to find higher crushed oregon enactment home?”

The dispatcher responds: “We person to get that approved with our supervisor.”

CodeRed is an opt-in notification strategy immoderate agencies usage to nonstop exigency alerts to subscribers’ compartment phones.

Sen. Jose Menendez, D-San Antonio, work from a transcript.

“But the supervisor, it says here, couldn’t beryllium instantly disposable connected the phone,” helium said. “Just different illustration of wherefore we request to get this professionalized.”

Along with calls for much training, and statewide standards and qualifications for exigency absorption coordinator positions, lawmakers besides brought up failures successful connection equipment, similar radios utilized by archetypal responders.

“But the supervisor, it says here, couldn’t beryllium instantly disposable connected the phone,” helium said. “Just different illustration of wherefore we request to get this professionalized.”

Along with calls for much training, and statewide standards and qualifications for exigency absorption coordinator positions, lawmakers besides brought up failures successful connection equipment, similar radios utilized by archetypal responders. During the past regular session, Moody co-authored House Bill 13, successful part, to hole problems with interoperability. It failed to pass. Among those voting against it past was Rep. Wes Virdell, R-Brady, whose territory includes Kerr County. He present sits connected this peculiar committee.

“Government sometimes has the occupation of overreacting to a situation, truthful I deliberation it’s bully to person thorough discussions,” Virdell told KXAN. “And, adjacent if it takes a small portion for that to happen, I deliberation not overreacting instantly is simply a bully thing.”

Virdell said upwind informing sirens, which was portion of HB 13, “should beryllium connected the array for discussion” but questioned however effectual they would be.

“I bash deliberation they person their spot but a batch of times if you’re indoors, particularly 4 o’clock successful the greeting erstwhile it’s pouring down rain, the likelihood is going to beryllium that you’re not going to perceive those sirens.”

For Virdell, the “real question” is “when’s the close clip to nonstop alerts retired and are we sending excessively galore alerts retired close now?” His different apical priorities impact establishing a catastrophe alleviation money and helping homeowners rebuild. Cities that usage sirens, similar San Marcos, person called them a “vital instrumentality for exigency preparedness” successful summation to upwind radios and mobile alerts.

There was nary nationalist grounds astatine this hearing. The associated committee volition reconvene connected July 31 successful Kerrville to perceive straight from residents and officials impacted by the flooding.

“Do we request a amended strategy for warning? Yes,” Kidd told lawmakers. “What does that look like? I don’t know.”