Flooding has prompted road closures around the Hill Country, including in Kerrville, pictured here.
Courtesy Kerrville Police Department
Heavy rain and flooding have closed a number of roads in the Hill Country west of San Antonio, including a stretch of U.S. 90 in Uvalde County.
“With more than 11 inches of rain reported in Sabinal and 10 in Concan, we’re asking everyone to stay home,” the Uvalde County Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday morning. The agency said U.S. 90 is “not passable” between Knippa and Sabinal, which is about 65 miles west of downtown San Antonio.
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“Stay home! Not safe to travel!” the Uvalde County Office of Emergency Management said in a social media post. “Flooded roads everywhere!”
With more rain in the forecast today and overnight, officials say flooding could worsen.
“People really need to pay attention,” said Dave Mauk, general manager of the Bandera County River Authority and Groundwater District. “If another event does happen tonight, that’s where we could have some real issues.”
Uvalde County
In addition to U.S. 90, a section of U.S. 83, which runs through Uvalde, is also impassable, the sheriff’s office said.
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Texas Game Wardens are responding to water rescue calls in the county, including one west of Sabinal, Texas Parks and Wildlife said.
Sabinal Mayor Erik Gomez said in a post on Facebook that the city has received more than 14 inches of rain, with more expected.
A number of roads in the city of Uvalde are flooded and closed, according to the Uvalde Police Department.
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City officials say 24 water rescues have been conducted, and the city opened a temporary shelter at the William R. Mitchell Uvalde County Fairplex.
“Representatives from the city, county, state and federal agencies have been engaged in operations to monitor the public’s safety throughout the day,” the city said in a social media post at 4:45 p.m. “We can confirm that all dams within Uvalde County are working properly at this time. We do expect a water surge in rivers, creeks, and drainage areas to continue throughout the night. Stay vigilant.”
Medina County
Medina County Emergency Management Coordinator Mark Chadwick said four people were rescued overnight from high water, but there were no injuries.
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He said he expects continued flooding Tuesday night and Wednesday, but said there are no evacuation orders currently in place.
More than three dozen roads in Medina County were closed Tuesday due to flooding.
Water is “running heavy” in Parker Creek in downtown D’Hanis, and all roads in D’Hanis south of U.S. 90 have standing water, the emergency management office said.
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READ MORE: Up to 10 inches of rain coming to parts of South Texas. Here’s an updated timeline.
Bandera County
Bandera County is reporting more than 20 road closures due to flooding.
Mauk said the closures are primarily in low-water crossings, areas that are prone to flood. But with more rain still falling and with the ground already saturated, that situation could change quickly, particularly in the north and west parts of Bandera County.
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The Medina River is out of its banks in some areas, he said. While the flooding is currently minor, “if we get any more somewhat-significant rains while it’s up like this, it’s going to get interesting,” he said.
“With the river being primed, it wouldn’t take a ton of water to make some significant flooding out here,” Mauk said.
Bandera County Judge Richard Evans said the county completed voluntary evacuations at low-lying RV parks on Tuesday, and that park operators have been told to prepare campers to leave if needed.
“You can’t wait until the last minute,” Evans said. “We have all these RV parks, you never know who’s going to be up here, who’s not familiar with what happens if it floods. They’ve talked to their campers; they know if they say move, you need to move,” he said.
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The county will open up its emergency management center tonight, and state and local officials will be on site, he said.
“If things proceed as we hope they don’t, we’ll have everyone there,” Evans said.
Comal County
Comal County also has closed some roads, including parts of Smithson Valley Road and Mustang Vista east of Bulverde, and West Ammann Road and Blanco Road west of Bulverde.
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Kerr County
While the Guadalupe River has risen, it remains below flood stages in Kerr County. But the heavy rains have closed roads around the county.
“We have barricades up at Arcadia at Bear Creek, Coronado at Junction Highway, Gilmer at Fourth, Lytle at First and Second, Town Creek at Schreiner, Goat Creek at Junction Highway and Hill Country Drive at Sidney Baker,” the Kerrville Police Department said. “We can’t stress this enough: do not drive around barricades, and do not drive into high water on the roadway even if no barricades are present. Low riding vehicles will flood out.”
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Officials said all city parks, including the Kerrville River Trail, are closed for the day.
The Ingram Volunteer Fire Department said there is “currently standing water covering portions of roadways in several low-lying areas” in the city. Warning signs are in place but drivers should be cautious of changing conditions.
“So far, Kerr County is seeing mostly normal localized flooding with no major damage reported or water rescues,” the Kerr County Sheriff’s Office said.
While staffers with the Kerrville Fire Department are currently out on the Guadalupe River, that’s solely for training purposes.
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“Our water ops team is training on the river today and utilizing the weather and river rise to get in some extra specialized training,” the department said in a post on Facebook. “There are NO rescues being performed, only keeping skills sharp and equipment ready.”
Kendall County
In Boerne, a number of roads were closed Tuesday morning due to rising water. City officials estimated 3 inches to 4 inches of rain fell overnight, withe one gauge registering 6 inches of rain, pushing Cibolo Creek into flood stage. That water made its way into Boerne City Lake, filling the lake to full capacity.
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In a video posted online, city spokesman Chris Shadrock said some roads had reopened in the afternoon as water receded, but that city crews were prepared to block roads as needed if additional rainfall leads to more flooding Tuesday night or Wednesday morning.