Death toll from flooding in Kerr County climbs to 103
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The threat of heavy rain is “slight” for this weekend, but with the ground fully saturated in Kerr County even small amounts of rainfall could cause flooding.
FEMA records show Kerr County officials did not use FEMA’s system to send warnings to phones in the critical hours as the flooding began on July 4.
In the last nine years, federal funding for a system has been denied to the county as it contends with a tax base hostile to government overspending.
"The first lady and I are here in Texas to express the love and support and the anguish of our entire nation in the aftermath of this really horrific and deadly flood," Trump said as he spoke at a roundtable event with first responders and local officials.
11hon MSN
New audio reveals what Kerr County first responders were hearing and acting on during the critical first few hours of the devastating floods. | Click to listen
Twice, the Texas Division of Emergency Management turned down Kerr County's requests for money to improve flood warnings. Hotspots ranked Start the day smarter ☀️ Funniest cap messages Get the ...
At a Wednesday morning press conference, Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha declined to answer a question about delayed emergency alerts, saying that an "after-action" would follow the search and rescue efforts. "Those questions are gonna be answered," he added.
Plans to develop a flood monitoring system in the Texas county hit hardest by deadly floods were scheduled to begin only a few weeks later.