KERR COUNTY, Texas – Since the deadly July Fourth flood in Texas Hill Country, many questions have arisen about local officials’ preparedness and response time.
During a hearing with Texas Lawmakers and Kerr County officials on Thursday, nearly a month after the devastating floods, we are learning more about Kerr County Officials’ response time to the catastrophic flood.
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Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha, who was asleep on the morning of the flood until 4:20 a.m., gave a detailed depiction of the calls and notifications that were dispatched in Kerrville on July 4.
He said starting at 1:14 a.m., the National Weather Service (NWS) issued a flash flood warning to Kerr County with one to two inches of rain falling, and one to two inches anticipated per hour, and an additional two to three inches possible.
During the hearing, Sheriff Leitha said he would focus on a period between 1:14 a.m. and 5:01 a.m. on July 4, which comes after weeks of questions from lawmakers and the media about what happened leading up to the flood.
“What we’ve done in about 28 days, it usually would take about six months, and we have a lot of data to look into: recordings, radio transactions, but we’ve done the best we can to get what we can for today for y’all,” Sheriff Leitha said.
1:14 a.m. - 3:30 a.m.
The communications team had seven phone calls and processed 22 radio transmissions.
3:31 a.m. - 4:22 a.m.
The communication center had 50 phone calls for service and rescue and 114 processed radio transmissions. The Sheriff said his team of two was “very busy at the time.”
1:14 a.m.
NWS issued a flash flood warning to Kerr County.
2:08 a.m.
Caller calls about road conditions, asking if they were clear.
2:53 a.m.
911 call from Riverend: “water coming over the river break.” Advised visitors of flooding. No evacuations.
“A lot of times when rain comes, it (the river) goes up. That’s normal for our area,” Sheriff Leitha said.
3:27 a.m.
A volunteer fire department reported that Shoemakers Crossing was not passable.
3:30 a.m.
The dispatcher received a call from a family on a roof for evacuation
“Now, that’s when I consider all hands on deck at 3:30 a.m.,” Sheriff Leitha said.
3:35 a.m.
Dispatch called out for Hunt Volunteer Fire Department for a swift water rescue.
3:39 a.m.
Mountain Home Volunteer Fire Department asked KCSO to tone out Ingram Volunteer Fire Department for evacuation at River RV Park.
3:41 a.m.
A KCSO deputy confirmed Schumacher Crossing was not passable.
3:43 a.m.
KCSO tones out Kerr County special operations for a swift water rescue.
3:46 a.m.
Dispatch received a call from someone with two young children, and they said there was water overtaking the home. That phone call was 24 minutes long, the sheriff said.
“Our dispatcher did a great job during that phone call,” said Sheriff Leitha. “Not only was she on the phone at the time with those two children, she was on the phone, had them on speaker phone, on an additional phone, also doing radio transmission typing. I said she did an amazing job.”
3:50 a.m.
Calls from Casa Bonita came in, advising that communities are flooding. Dispatch advised the callers to seek higher ground.
3:52 a.m.
Ingram Volunteer Fire Department went into service.
3:57 a.m.
Calls came in from Camp Mystic, with callers saying they were stranded on hills and seeking evacuation.
4:05 a.m.
Multiple reports came in of cabins on Casa Bonita flooding.
4:08 a.m.
KCSO tones out Mountain Home to Casa Bonita for water rescue.
4:11 a.m.
A KCSO sergeant was landlocked, meaning he had to abandon his cruiser and start evacuating nearby residents.
“What he did is he, he got trapped, but he got out of his vehicle and continued to notify people of what’s going on. Also provided first aid to one lady in that time,” Sheriff Leitha said. “He was actually trying to get ahold of another deputy. I had another female sergeant that was getting ready. That female sergeant lost her vehicle, her office Tahoe, and she was underwater and could barely breathe for 45 minutes.”
4:15 a.m.
A KCSO corporal arrived at Highway 39 and barricaded the highway.
4:22 a.m. to 5:01 a.m.
During these 39-minutes, the dispatch center workload was 19 calls of service and rescue and 168 radio transmissions.
“Still very busy for two people,” the Sheriff said.
4:22 a.m.
Hunt Volunteer Fire Department seeks Code Red Alert and KCSO dispatch acknowledgment.
4:23 a.m.
A KCSO sergeant approves the Code Red Alert.
4:24 a.m.
A KCSO deputy reports he hears kids screaming in the river.
4:28 a.m.
Dispatch called TxDOT for barricades.
4:30 a.m.
TxDOT calls dispatch asking for information on what is happening in reference to the flooding.
4:32 a.m.
NWS called KCSO asking if the roads are closed and if it is flooding.
4:35 a.m.
KCSO tones out Ingram Volunteer Fire Department for children trapped in water.
4:38 a.m.
A KCSO deputy was dispatched to Roland Lane to assist with children trapped in water.
4:42 a.m.
A KCSO corporal advised that people are on the roof in Hunt, and dispatchers are advising callers to seek higher ground.
4:44 a.m.
A KCSO corporal seeks helicopter evacuations for Hunt.
4:46 a.m.
The ETA for the swift water rescue boat is at 10 minutes. A KCSO deputy says the kids don’t have 10 minutes.
4:47 a.m.
KCSO dispatch received calls that Camp La Hunta building collapsed and is seeking a water rescue.
5:01 a.m.
KCSO issued a Code Red Alert.
Sheriff Leitha said from there on, “we just continued to be busy, but that’s kind of the bulk of the events between that time.”
Leitha acknowledged that he was not alerted to the flooding until about 4:20 a.m.
Rep. Ann Johnson, a Democrat from Houston, asked Leitha whether the county should have a protocol in place for when three of the top county officials are not available during an emergency.
“Yes, ma’am, we can look at that real hard,” Leitha said. “Yes, I can look and maybe they can call me earlier.”