At least 18 people are dead in Travis, Williamson and Burnet counties after flash floods swept through the area during the Fourth of July weekend.
There are dozens of road closures across Northwest Austin, Georgetown, Cedar Park and Marble Falls.
A federal disaster declaration that originally covered Kerr County has been expanded to allow Travis, Williamson and Burnet County residents to receive federal assistance.
Here's the latest from nearby counties affected by the flooding.
Travis County
Ten people died during flash floods in Travis County, and no one is considered missing as of July 25, according to county officials.
Austin-Travis County EMS said personnel had rescued 25 people in the northwest area of the county.
Sheriff Sally Hernandez said flood-related calls to 911 had gone from 49 at 1 a.m. on July 5 to 112 by 3 a.m.
"As daylight came and devastation became very painfully evident, we continued rescue efforts,” she said at a news conference on July 6, “and our special response team went door to door, checking on the welfare of all of those 911 callers that called in during the overnight hours."
County Judge Andy Brown and local emergency management officials said they believed NWS had been proactive in sending out alerts and warnings before and during the floods. Travis County Chief Emergency Management Coordinator Eric Carter said it was too soon to say whether any of the deaths associated with the flooding could have been prevented.
County officials said people affected by the floods who have immediate needs for shelter, clothing, food or water should call the Red Cross at 1-800-733-2767. Property damage can be reported to the Texas Department of Emergency Management.
Brown said people should refrain from any recreational water activities on local lakes over the coming days as emergency crews continue their recovery efforts and clear debris.
Separately, Austin ISD Superintendent Matias Segura said in an email to the community that families in the district had been impacted by the floods in Kerr County.
On July 6, community members gathered for a vigil in the West Austin neighborhood of Tarrytown. Green bows lined the poles, columns and trees throughout the neighborhood leading to Casis Elementary.
In front of the flagpole at the entrance to the school, teachers, friends, families and others prayed, sang and lit candles in honor of the flood victims. Some girls wore T-shirts that said Camp Mystic — the name of the Christian girls camp along the Guadalupe River that was ravaged in Kerr County. One of the victims was a student at Casis, the Austin American-Statesman reported.
Williamson County
In Williamson County, three people were confirmed dead from the flooding.
County officials are urging people to stay away from the San Gabriel River; debris including trees, refrigerators and cars pose a hazard. Avoid flying drones in the area, as they can interfere with rescue efforts. Don't drive around barricades on roads, officials said.
Many trails close to the river are closed until further notice.
At a news conference on July 6, Sheriff Matthew Lindeman said calls started coming in before 2 a.m. on July 5 about water rising over roadways in the Liberty Hill area. After 5 a.m., calls came in from far western Williamson County about floodwaters going into homes.
After sunrise, deputies went door to door in RV parks in a low-lying area along Highway 29 east of Georgetown, telling people to move to higher ground. Most heeded the warning.
“However, one was rescued a little later in the day by swift-water rescue teams from Parks & Wildlife and the sheriff’s office," the sheriff said. "A number of pets were rescued as well."
By the afternoon, the Sheriff’s Office got a call about a vehicle being swept away from County Road 284, west of Liberty Hill. The vehicle was found hours later, still partially submerged with no one seen inside. Lindeman said it was not until after the water had begun to recede late in the day that a body was found near that vehicle.
On the evening of July 6, the county reported that the body of another person was recovered after a day of search operations. Officials said on July 8 that rescue crews had found the third flooding victim.
A boil water notice for parts of Georgetown was lifted on July 10.
Thirty-seven dogs and 75 cats were evacuated from the Georgetown Animal Shelter and transferred to the Williamson County Regional Animal Shelter, County Judge Steven Snell said on July 7. The county expected to take in more animals from the Lampasas Animal Shelter.
Burnet County
In Burnet County, there are five confirmed deaths and one person still missing as of July 12.
Rescue crews are still looking for Michael Phillips, chief of the Marble Falls Area Volunteer Fire Department, who went missing over the Fourth of July weekend while attempting a rescue.
County officials said there have been 63 rescues, primarily in the areas around Cow Creek and Hamilton Creek.
"We've had [people] in cars with water, we've had them on top of cars, we've had them in trees, we've had them in homes that were surrounded by water, we've had them on rooftops," Capt. Mike Sorenson with the Burnet County Sheriff's Office said.
The Sheriff's Office has been working with several local, state and federal agencies on rescue efforts. Major General Thomas M. Suelzer with the Texas National Guard said emergency personnel are working in Burnet County, where there have been five air evacuations.
The Sheriff's Office has a list of road closures and areas they recommend people avoid on its Facebook page.
Resources
Here are a few ways to monitor flooding and potential impacts:
- Follow the National Weather Service Austin/San Antonio’s account on X for the latest weather updates.
- Follow Austin Emergency Management on Facebook or X for local notifications and tips.
- Go to WARN Central Texas to sign up for emergency alerts.
- Visit Austin Energy’s website to report a power outage or see a map of current outages. If you're a customer of another energy provider, Bluebonnet Electric Co-op, Pedernales Electric Co-op and Oncor have their own outage maps.
- Check the Lower Colorado River Authority's HydroMet monitoring system to check rainfall totals for the area in near real time. You can also look at lake levels, streamflow and river stage.
- Visit ATXFloods.com to look at which roads in Central Texas are closed due to flooding.
- KUT also has a list of useful accounts on X that post about local weather.
KUT's Luz Moreno-Lozano contributed to this report.
