![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.jsg.utexas.edu\/news\/files\/IMG_9589-scaled-e1783634081342.jpg\")
<\/a>Associate Professor Daniella Rempe holds a 3D-printed model of the flood alarm device she is developing. Credit: Jackson School<\/p>\nIn the aftermath of the devastating July 4,\u00a02025\u00a0floods that took 139 lives in Central Texas,\u00a0an associate professor at The University of Texas at Austin set out to make a new type of outdoor flood alarm: one that was low-tech, loud, and that anyone could \u201cset and forget\u201d \u2014 just like a smoke detector.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
One year later, the alarm is on its way toward becoming a reality. The\u00a0provisional\u00a0patent application for the technology was filed\u00a0on June 22, and Discovery to Impact, UT\u2019s research commercialization unit, has helped fund the small business for the device \u2014\u00a0RiseAlert, LLC.\u00a0<\/p>\n
After learning about the tragedy\u00a0at Camp Mystic that took the lives of 27 campers and counselors,\u00a0Daniella Rempe, an associate professor of hydrology at the UT Jackson School of Geosciences,\u00a0enlisted\u00a0longtime collaborators David Dralle, a research hydrologist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, and Jesse Hahm, an associate professor at Simon Fraser University, to\u00a0help design\u00a0a simple outdoor flood alarm.\u00a0She had spent her summers as a kid at a sleepaway camp in the Texas Hill Country, and she wanted to build something that could prevent a tragedy like this from occurring ever again\u2014not just in this part of Texas, but anywhere in the world.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The team\u2019s\u00a0design\u00a0is\u00a0intentionally\u00a0simple:\u00a0Like high-water alarms used in septic systems, it pairs a water-level sensor with an alarm and warning light. The difference is that it is designed\u00a0specifically\u00a0for outdoor flood\u00a0warning. The design process has been focused on affordability, low power consumption, and minimal maintenance.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re trying to fill\u00a0an important\u00a0gap in flood safety: a last line of defense\u00a0device,\u201d Rempe said. \u201cEven in communities\u00a0like mine that are fortunate to have\u00a0emergency warning texts and sirens, a device like this\u00a0can save lives.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The device has come a long way since its first\u00a0proof of concept\u00a0\u2014\u00a0which was\u00a0a collection of off-the-shelf components wired together\u00a0along\u00a0a piece\u00a0of wood.\u00a0The design process\u00a0is\u00a0now complete, and Rempe\u2019s team is moving on to prototype testing.\u00a0But, crucially,\u00a0RiseAlert\u00a0needs investors before\u00a0production can\u00a0begin.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we saw that there was nothing like this out there, we just thought it was time to step in and build something. It just seemed like the right thing to do.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniella Rempe<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re looking for partners right now,\u201d Rempe said. \u201cFlash floods are a global hazard. Our goal is to make outdoor flood alarms as\u00a0affordable and easy to install and\u00a0maintain\u00a0as smoke detectors.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The alarm is low-tech and\u00a0low-upkeep.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0designed so that when floodwater rises to a preset height, it triggers a water-level sensor that activates a loud alarm and warning light.\u00a0Installation\u00a0could\u00a0be as simple as\u00a0securing\u00a0the device to a tree or a fence\u00a0post\u00a0downslope from a residence.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0designed to have a battery life of\u00a0at least\u00a010 years, and to be weather- and pest-resistant. It\u00a0doesn\u2019t\u00a0connect to the internet or have a phone app, which Rempe argues\u00a0makes it more reliable during an emergency.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It\u2019s\u00a0meant to fill a niche that Rempe finds surprisingly lacking: a\u00a0device\u00a0that can detect life-threatening floods as the water is rising on an individual property.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Currently, indoor flood alarms are widely available, but\u00a0they\u2019re\u00a0meant to detect leaks inside and would not be able to withstand outdoor conditions. They also\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0provide a lot of warning if water from a flood were already inside a home. Some cities have\u00a0early warning systems such as\u00a0outdoor flood sirens\u00a0or text alerts, but\u00a0they\u2019re\u00a0cast over large areas and do not necessarily reflect the conditions at any\u00a0induvial\u00a0property.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As hydrologists,\u00a0Rempe\u00a0and her colleagues set up advanced instruments for studying\u00a0rivers\u00a0during floods and droughts\u00a0as part of their day job. But they also recognize that the most effective solution\u00a0isn\u2019t\u00a0always the most complex.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we saw that there was nothing like this out there, we just thought it was time to step in and build something,\u201d she said. \u201cIt just seemed like the right thing to do.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"July 13, 2026 Associate Professor Daniella Rempe holds a 3D-printed model of the flood alarm device she is…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":371261,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[132,134,133],"class_list":["post-371260","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-austin","tag-austin","tag-austin-headlines","tag-austin-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/371260","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=371260"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/371260\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/371261"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=371260"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=371260"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=371260"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}