KERRVILLE, Texas – More heavy rains in Texas on Sunday temporarily paused a weeklong search for victims of catastrophic flooding along the Guadalupe River and led to dozens of high-water rescues elsewhere as storms damaged homes, stranded motorists and put some residents under evacuation orders.
It was the first time a new round of severe weather had paused the search since the July Fourth holiday floods, which killed at least 132 people. Authorities believe more than 160 people may still be missing in Kerr County alone, and 10 more in neighboring areas.
In Kerrville, where local officials have come under scrutiny over whether residents were adequately warned about the rising water in the early morning hours of July 4, authorities went door-to-door to some homes after midnight early Sunday to alert people that flooding was again possible. Authorities also pushed phone alerts to those in the area.
By late Sunday afternoon, the Kerr County Sheriff’s Office announced that search teams in the western part of that county could resume their efforts. But more than 100 miles (161 kilometers) north in San Saba County, the floods damaged about 100 homes and knocked down untold lengths of cattle fencing, said Ashley Johnson, CEO of the Hill Country Community Action Association, a local nonprofit.
“Anything you can imagine in a rural community was damaged,” she said. “Our blessing is it was daylight and we knew it was coming.”
“The risk of flash flooding is high,” Kerrville officials said in a statement. “For your safety, please heed this warning and leave the river corridor now.”
Today we spoke to the Fredericksburg Fire Chief Lynn Bizzell who tells us they will be back on the ground first thing in the morning, but due to safety reasons, they are suspending the search operations until then.
Chief Bizznell says his crews oversee an 8 mile radius for search and rescue operations along the Guadalupe River, from Rio Vista Road in Ingram to Highway 98 in Kerrville; their boots are on the ground but not today.
“At about 9:15 we decided to suspend operations for today due to safety concerns on the river,” Chief Bizzell said.
The recent rain from today, caused the river to rise again, leaving volunteers and first responders with no choice but to get to higher ground, and wait until they are in the clear again.
“It’s an every minute discussion, or every 15-minute discussion with them to make sure that we are not going to get a wall of water coming up on top of us,” Chief Bizzell said.
Authorities are still blocking off some of the main roads near the river, only allowing first responders and residents to pass through.
Mateo Mata’s mom lives right up the road near the river he drove from fort worth to ingram, to make sure she was okay.
“Just the amount of damage here is crazy. I have never seen it this bad, ever. we are used to a little bit of flooding but not like this,” Mata said.
His mom is safe, but seeing the devastation has left his heart in pieces.
“Coming in I can feel the heaviness in the air. It’s just crazy watching it but seeing it in person is totally different from watching it on TV,” Mata said.
Although Mata has since moved away, he can’t help but think about all the memories he made growing up with his cousin along the same bridge.
“This is always home. Seeing the destruction and hearing about all the innocent lives lost especially the children, it weighs really heavy. It’s been weighing really heavy on me.”
As for safety measures for the rising river, Chief Bizzell says they were in place. We’re told search and rescue operations will pick back up first thing tomorrow morning.
Latest flooding damages dozens of homes
Gov. Greg Abbott said on X that the state was making rescues in San Saba, Lampasas and Schleicher counties and that evacuations were taking place in a handful of others. Texas Task Force 1, a joint state and federal urban search and rescue team, had rescued dozens of people in the Lampasas area, Abbott said.
County officials ordered everyone living in flood-prone areas near the San Saba River to evacuate. Johnson said people were being moved to the San Saba Civic Center, which has become a safe, high place for people to receive aid and shelter.
“Everyone is in some way personally affected by this,” she said. “Everyone is just doing what they can to help their neighbors.”
A wide-ranging weather system brings heavy rains
The weather system brought multiple rounds of heavy rains and slow-moving storms across a widespread area, pushing rivers and streams over their banks.
Emergency crews rescued one motorist who was left stranded in waist-high rapids on a submerged bridge over the Bosque River and leaned onto the vehicle for support as crews tried to reach him with life jackets.
“He drove into it and didn’t realize how deep it was,” said Jeff Douglas, president of the McGregor Volunteer Fire Department. “Luckily he was able to stand next to the vehicle.”
In the west Texas city of Sonora, authorities called for evacuations of some neighborhoods due to rising flood waters. In a video posted Sunday afternoon on Facebook, Mayor Juanita Gomez said some water rescues had taken place and a temporary shelter for residents had been opened in the city’s civic center.
Kerrville residents get support from police, alerts
Under heavy rain, Matthew Stone was clearing branches and a log from a storm sewer in front of his home on Guadalupe Street in Kerrville on Sunday as several inches of water pooled up on the road.
Multiple houses on the street overlooking the Guadalupe River were severely impacted by the July 4 floods, and Stone had to pull his older neighbors from their home before water overtook it. He said he felt safe for now.
“My wife was freaking out, that’s for sure, but as long as that river is not coming down, we’ll be all right,” he said. “The cops have been coming back and forth, we’re getting lots of alerts, we’re getting a lot of support.”
In nearby Ingram, fire department spokesman Brian Lochte said search and rescue efforts would resume Monday morning.
Just before daybreak on the Fourth of July, the destructive, fast-moving waters rose 26 feet (8 meters) on the Guadalupe River, washing away homes and vehicles. Ever since, searchers have used helicopters, boats and drones to look for victims and to rescue people stranded in trees and from camps isolated by washed-out roads.
The floods laid waste to the Hill Country region of Texas. The riverbanks and hills of Kerr County are filled with vacation cabins, youth camps and campgrounds, including Camp Mystic, the century-old, all-girls Christian summer camp.
Located in a low-lying area along the Guadalupe River in a region known as flash flood alley, Camp Mystic lost at least 27 campers and counselors.
The flood was far more severe than the 100-year event envisioned by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, experts said, and moved so quickly in the middle of the night that it caught many off guard in a county that lacked a warning system.