Flooding across Central Texas brought havoc, destruction and deep loss to the region in an incredibly short period of time. In the early hours of July 4, water gauge readings went from 1.73 feet at 3:45 a.m. to just under 24 feet at 4:45 a.m., with a massive amount of water rushing down the Guadalupe River, Rick McBrayer, Victoria County emergency management coordinator, said.

Some areas experienced eight to 12 inches of rainfall in less than six hours. Areas in and surrounding Kerr County experienced extreme flash flooding with current reported deaths reaching 90 (2 p.m. CT), including young girls and counselors from Camp Mystic, according to The Washington Post.

The National Weather Service issued warnings in the early hours of the flood. The flood waters rapidly gained intensity and speed and the volume of water rose quickly leaving little time for effective reaction to the issued warnings.

With water flowing down the Guadalupe River, citizens in Victoria County have questioned what effect the flood waters may have on the Crossroads region. As of the morning of July 7, the Canyon Lake reservoir is at 62 percent of its full capacity. At the start of the July 4 event, the reservoir was at 47 percent of its full capacity.

“It had a lot of capacity to take on,” McBrayer said. “As we saw the headwaters that were occurring in the Guadalupe River and Kerrville/Hunt area, we knew that this lake specifically was designed for reservoir capacity for downstream flooding, and it did its job.”

Victoria County remains under a flood warning as a result of the heavy rainfall south of the Canyon Lake reservoir, but current projections do not indicate any significant impact to the area, according to the Victoria Office of Emergency Management (VOEM)

As of 9:30 a.m. on July 7, the Guadalupe River water level for the Victoria area is projected to rise to 16.8 feet on Tuesday, July 8, at approximately 4:00 p.m. The water level for the Bloomington Gauge is projected to rise to 21.90 feet on Wednesday, July 9, at approximately 9 p.m. The Bloomington Gauge is located on the opposite side of the barge canal and does not directly impact the incorporated City of Bloomington.

“We are coordinating with our state and regional partners to understand if there is going to be any direct impacts to Victoria related to this very specific event that occurred within those morning hours,” McBrayer said. “Because we are at the end of the river basin, we’re waiting for that water to come down to us, and so we’re looking closely at their estimates on forecasting.”

In order to stay aware of emergency weather conditions and alerts, community members should sign up for the Victoria Code Red system. The Code Red system is an emergency communications network that allows the VOEM to reach out to citizens when an event is occurring that causes the implementation of health, safety and life saving measures.

Community members should make sure to turn on Amber Alerts, emergency alerts and public warnings on their cell phones by navigating to notification settings and scrolling to the bottom of the page.

For those wishing to provide assistance to Kerr County, it is crucial to not self-deploy, McBrayer said. The region has an adequate number of “boots on the ground” providing assistance. The area is in need of support and resources. Financial donations are essential during this time.

Those looking to donate may do so online to the Southern Baptist of Texas Convention, Kerr County Flood Relief Fund, Texans on Mission and the Salvation Army Kerrville.

Physical donations may be made to The Salvation Army donation center at 855 Hays Street, Kerrville, Texas 78028. Pick-up and Drop-off of food, water, supplies and clothes can be done at Cross Kingdom Church, 3044 Junction Highway, Kerrville, Texas, 78025.

“It’s so important for us to continue to give to our local and regional and state affiliated groups that we do on a normal basis,” McBrayer said. “Don’t stop giving. As you give to the Salvation Army, American Red Cross, Food Bank of the Golden Crescent and Christ’s Kitchen, those things have a trickle down effect, because they’re able to take those resources and extend them over.”

Michael Milliorn is a news reporter for the Victoria Advocate. He can be reached at michael.milliorn@vicad.com.