Central Texans were jolted awake overnight into Monday as several flood alerts came through, prompting alarm and annoyance.
The National Weather Service issued multiple flash flood warning alerts for Central Texas, including alerts at 2:21 a.m. and 5:28 a.m. On Reddit and X, several posts detailed the loud alert waking people up multiple times over.
The National Weather Service Austin/San Antonio said several warnings were issued because the flash flood warning timeframes were extended. For example, the 2:21 a.m. alert showed the warning in effect until 6 a.m., while the 5:28 a.m. updated it to say 8 a.m.
“NWS Austin/San Antonio issued several Flash Flood Warnings last night that triggered Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA),” NWS meteorologist Jason Runyen said. “Some of these warnings were extended in time, which also triggered WEAs.”
Runyen noted that NWS had not made any recent changes to its issuance procedures for flash flood warnings.
But there’s a reason you may not have recognized the alarm accompanying the alerts. In December, Apple implemented an iOS update that introduced “Enhanced Safety Alerts,” which provide alerts during emergencies such as earthquakes or floods “based on information from alert originators.”
NWS says residents should follow these safety guidelines when faced with a flash flood warning:
And while the alerts may have annoyed residents, Austinites saw the need for them based on video of high water at Lady Bird Lake.