Texas Community Rejected Sirens Before Flood: Former Official Tom Moser

Emergency Management Planning in Texas

• 💡 A comprehensive emergency management plan exists for Kerr County, Texas, detailing procedures for various emergencies including floods.
• 📌 This plan is required by the state to be updated every 5 years and is available at the commissioner's court.
• 🎯 The plan clearly delineates who is in charge for different emergency scenarios, with an emergency management coordinator for both the county and city working closely together.

Siren System Proposal and Rejection

• ⚠️ In 2015, following a major flood event in Wimberly, Texas, a proposal was made to incorporate an emergency alarm system with sirens for Kerr County.
• 🚫 However, community members rejected the siren system due to concerns about false alarms and potential disturbances.
• 💰 The estimated cost for such a system was over a million dollars, and efforts to secure grant funding from the state of Texas were unsuccessful.

Flood Warning Systems Implemented

• 📈 As an alternative, flood gauges were installed on low-water crossings to inform the public about safe crossing levels.
• 🛰️ The system relies on the National Weather Bureau for alerts, which feed into the emergency management plan.
• 🗣️ The former commissioner stated that he does not have current access to the emergency management plan or specific details about the notification process during the recent event.