KERR COUNTY, Texas — The deadly flooding in Texas' Hill Country resulted from torrential downpours that caused the Guadalupe River to rise more than 25 feet within an hour, destroying homes, vehicles and roads.
Barry Adelman, who was staying at his grandmother's riverside home, was awakened by the sound of rushing water on the July Fourth holiday.
"The scariest part for me was seeing the children and the moms and the dads in the trees and knowing they were hurt and without some of their loved ones," Adelman said in an interview Friday.
From his grandmother's house, Adelman photographed a family friend clinging to a tree amid the raging waters.
"She was floating down the river with her husband, and her husband kept telling her to grab anything you can grab and she did, she said Barry, I caught the last tree, the very last tree right on your property," Adelman said.
More than 160 people still are believed to be missing and at least 115 have died in the floods that laid waste to the Hill Country region of Texas. State officials report they had meetings to prepare for potential flooding.
The National Weather Service issued a flood watch, estimating rising water of up to 7 inches in spots on Thursday afternoon. A “watch” means conditions are favorable for a flood and people should be prepared, but hazardous conditions might not develop.
But the watch was upgraded to a flood warning overnight, a notice that impacted 30,000 people. A warning is issued when flooding is imminent or occurring, the weather service says.
Lt,. Gov. Dan Patrick said the potential for heavy rain and flooding covered a large area, and “everything was done to give them a heads-up that you could have heavy rain."
However, when asked about how people were notified in Kerr County so that they could get to safety, Judge Rob Kelly, the county’s chief elected official, said: “We do not have a warning system.”
When reporters pushed on why more precautions weren’t taken, Kelly responded: “Rest assured, no one knew this kind of flood was coming.”
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