KERRVILLE, Texas (KXXV) — On Thursday, a second public hearing was held by the Texas House Select Committe on Disaster Preparedness & Flooding, but held it in Kerrville.
- Kerr County leaders, state agencies and the community addressed the House Select Committee.
- The Mayor of Kerrville is calling for warning systems to be installed along the Guadalupe River by next summer.
- Kerr County Emergency Management Coordinator addressed why he was not present during the early hours of the flood disaster, citing an illness and that he was home.
- Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha gave a timeline on what dispatch and first responders were doing in the early hours of the floods.
Watch the full story here:
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
"We are grieving... we are shaken... but we are not broken," Joe Herring, Mayor of Kerrville, said.
On Thursday, Texas lawmakers at ground zero in Kerr County.
"This day will forever haunt me," Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said.
The second hearing of the Texas Senate and House Select Committee on Disaster Preparedness and Flooding, raising new questions and adding to the mounting pressure on local leaders.
"The three guys in Kerr County, who were responsible for sounding the alarm, were effectively unavailable. Is that right?" State Rep. Ann Johnson asked.
"But it seems to me like we need an emergency response that is up to the task at the time it is going on," State Rep. AJ Louderback said.
"To protect the citizens of Kerr County, you had money in your budget for funding, but yet you chose not to. Would you care to elaborate on that?" State Rep. Drew Darby asked.
"With that fact, do you want to change your stance on if you think the river warning systems could have helped save lives?" Sen. Paul Bettencourt asked.
One by one, Kerr County leaders responding.
"A 3:34 a.m. call was transferred to the county, but we lack the procedure to notify all personnel in a flooding event across jurisdiction," Kerrville city manager Dalton Rice said. "Our patrol team showed awareness, but broader communication could have been faster."
"I want to directly address the questions about my whereabouts," Kerr County emergency management coordinator William Thomas said. "On July the 2nd, I worked a full day despite not feeling well. Due to my progressive illness, I remained home."
"In this particular case, I don't know that warning systems would have changed the outcome," Kerr county judge Rob Kelly said.
Despite that, the Mayor of Kerrville is calling for warning systems to be installed along the Guadalupe River by next summer.
"Things we can do better, improve our city's response, for when the Guadalupe River floods again - and it will flood again," Herring said.
But state lawmakers were not the only ones pressing for answers.
For the first time, the lawmakers got to hear from the community:
"I begin to ask, 'How did this happen?'"
"There are zero flood mitigation plans, there are zero gauges. That is unacceptable."
