In April of 1900, Austin’s newly constructed dam failed<\/a>, sending a 50-foot wall of water pouring through downtown. This flooding event left at least 50 dead, making it the second deadliest in the Austin area’s history.<\/p>\n The Austin Dam on the Colorado River broke during the 1900 flood.<\/p>\n In April of 1915<\/a>, hard rain caused a flash flood sending debris gushing through Shoal Creek and Waller Creek, killing around 35 people \u2014 the third deadliest event on record.<\/p>\n People gather on the stone bridge to survey the aftermath of the April 1915 flood at Waller Creek in Austin.<\/p>\n Flooding continued to be a regularity for Central Texas in the 1900s, with at least three notable flooding events occurring just in the 1930s and three more again in the 1980s. Events like the 1981 Memorial Day flood<\/a>, catastrophic for many buildings and homes, killed 13 people.<\/p>\n In 1981, residents along Williamson Creek were forced from their homes as heavy rains flooded the creek banks.<\/p>\n The recent July 4 weekend flood left at least 18 dead<\/a> in Travis and neighboring counties, as of July 17. It is the fourth deadliest in the Austin area’s history \u2014\u00a0and the deadliest since the construction of the Highland Lakes<\/a> reservoirs in the 1930s. <\/p>\n A list of the deadliest flooding in the Austin area and statewide, as of July 21.<\/p>\n The deadliest local flooding event in recorded history took place in 1921.<\/p>\n Remnants of the Tampa Bay hurricane settled over Thrall, a small city outside of Taylor in Williamson County, starting a 24-hour downpour. Rivers overflowed throughout Central Texas from the constant rain. The flood claimed nearly 100 lives in Austin’s neighboring counties<\/a> alone. The disaster also stands as the second deadliest flooding event in state history. <\/p>\n What is the deadliest flood in Texas history?<\/p>\n While many may think of the more infamous hurricanes of the past century, such as Harvey in 2017 or Beulah in 1967<\/a>, those storms left far more homeless than dead. Harvey did cause the most damage in state history, though, costing over $125 billion.<\/p>\n The deadliest flood in Texas \u2014 and in modern American history for that matter \u2014 was the Great Galveston Hurricane<\/a> in 1900. The hurricane claimed at least 6,000 lives and likely thousands more. It also destroyed over 2,500 homes, damaging thousands more.<\/p>\n Following the 1921 flood, men stand where Washburn Street had been washed away by floodwaters in Taylor.<\/p>\n The 1921 San Antonio flooding that saw over 200 lives lost statewide is the second deadliest since 1900. The third deadliest is the 1913 Central Texas floods<\/a>, claiming nearly 180 lives.<\/p>\n The recent July 4 weekend flooding event \u2014 affecting multiple areas of Texas, in particular the Kerrville area \u2014 is the fourth deadliest in state history, with over 130 found dead.<\/p>\n How much water was in this flood?<\/p>\n Parts of the Highland Lakes region received as much as 22 inches of rainfall over the July 4 weekend, according to the Lower Colorado River Authority. To put that in perspective, Austin averages 35.5 inches of rainfall<\/a> per year.<\/p>\n Lake Travis took the brunt of the recent flood and rain, rising more than 30 feet to a little over 673 feet<\/a>, LCRA data shows. The far less deadly \u201cChristmas Flood\u201d of 1991 raised Lake Travis to its highest point ever at just over 710 feet, according to the Austin Water Center for Environmental Research.<\/p>\n So, why was this month’s flooding event so deadly? Experts suggest the nature of flash floods \u2014 the Guadalupe River rising to 26 feet within 45 minutes<\/a> \u2014 contributed to the dangerous flows that rushed through the Texas Hill Country.<\/p>\n In a striking parallel to the recent tragedy at Camp Mystic, the Guadalupe also flooded in 1987<\/a>, killing 10 teenagers who were trying to flee their summer camp as floodwaters rose.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n