A year after flooding Central Texas killed more than 130 people, the community is left with questions: philosophical ones about life with grief and practical ones about accountability. A new public media-powered podcast, After the Flood, launched June 24 to catch up with survivors in search of answers.<\/p>\n
The five-part podcast series, hosted by Dominic Anthony Walsh<\/a> of Houston Public Media, combines the efforts of the famous PBS investigative documentary program Frontline and the Texas Newsroom, a collaborative news network between NPR, KUT News in Austin, KERA in North Texas, Houston Public Media, Texas Public Radio in San Antonio, and more stations. It is supported by Frontline’s Local Journalism Initiative<\/a>, which is in turn funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.<\/p>\n Most of the flooding happened in Kerr County along the Guadalupe River, and much of the podcast focuses on this region. However, communities north of Austin proper also experienced flooding, including Sandy Creek<\/a>, the topic of one episode that addresses the neglect the community experienced, or as a press release about the podcast puts it, their “feeling overlooked in the broader disaster response.”<\/p>\n Other episodes present first-person accounts of the floods, the history of the outdated flood warning system in the Hill Country’s notorious “Flash Flood Alley,” the legal struggle to install new safety legislation for children’s camps in the area, like Camp Mystic, and anniversary reflections on what will come next in long-term recovery. Episodes include reporting by Kailey Hunt<\/a> (KUT News), Lucio Vasquez<\/a> (The Texas Newsroom), Sarah Grunau<\/a> (Houston Public Media), and more.<\/p>\n “The first days of a disaster are only part of the story,” said Walsh in the release. “Recovery unfolds over months and years. By returning repeatedly to these communities, we were able to document how grief evolves, how people rebuild their lives, and why many residents believe important questions about preparedness and accountability remain unresolved.”<\/p>\n As the anniversary of the floods approaches, the news stories continue rolling in. In May, a moving story about the flood in Texas Monthly won a Pulitzer Prize<\/a> and its author, Aaron Parsley, started his own podcast<\/a> on the topic. In the same month, a documentary film<\/a> about ecological recovery toured Texas. Camp Mystic, on the same day the Texas Newsroom podcast launched, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization<\/a>. News is couched not just in facts and quotes, but in ongoing debates about what’s enough.<\/p>\n \u201cThis reporting project reflects public media at its best \u2013 taking the time to earn trust, build relationships and follow communities long after the headlines fade,\u201d said After the Flood executive producer Ana Campbell, who is also special projects editor for the Texas Newsroom. \u201cThe people featured in this series are still living with the consequences every day, and their stories raise important questions about preparedness, accountability and recovery.\u201d<\/p>\n