Texas Governor Unveils Flood Response Agenda as Kerr County Death Toll Nears 100

On Wednesday, Governor Greg Abbott unveiled the agenda for an upcoming special legislative session, emphasizing disaster preparedness in the wake of the devastating flooding in the Texas Hill Country, which resulted in at least 96 fatalities in Kerr County alone.

Four of the session’s 18 agenda items focus on the state’s response to flooding: improving warning systems, enhancing emergency communications, allocating relief funds for affected communities, and strengthening preparation and recovery protocols for natural disasters.

According to CNN reports, related investigations revealed that Texas officials turned down two previous requests from Kerr County for federal funding to implement a flood warning system.

In 2016, Kerr County applied for funding, but the Texas Division of Emergency Management rejected the application due to the absence of a hazard mitigation plan. A subsequent appeal following Hurricane Harvey in 2017 was also rejected, as the county was not included in the designated disaster declaration area at that time.

"Immediate action is necessary," Abbott stated in a release. “This tragedy has revealed the dire consequences of a lack of readiness.” The upcoming session needs to bring about transformation.

According to Kerrville Police Community Services Officer Jonathan Lamb, over 2,100 responders from various local, state, and federal agencies are actively engaged on the ground in Kerr County. Ten states have deployed response teams, and two additional states are on their way to provide support.

Lamb reported on Thursday that 161 individuals, including five campers and one counselor from Camp Mystic, remain unaccounted for. The confirmed death toll in Kerr County has reached 96, with 36 of those being children.

The special session, according to Abbott, will additionally examine reforms to infrastructure grants and aim for bipartisan backing for a new statewide initiative focused on hazard readiness.

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