‘This comes at night’: Texas official said they were caught red -handed by a deadly rainstorm, flood
The deadly floods that hit Texas on July 4 arrested local officials off guard because of heavy rain caused the Guadalupe River to rise to almost historic levels in minutes, officials said at a press conference on Saturday.
A flood watch applies to the New Mexico and West Texas parts on Thursday afternoon when the round of storm that moves slowly packs heavy rain moves through the area. On Thursday night, five -inch rain had fallen in several parts of West Texas, including Midland and Odessa.
The Boerne search and rescue team navigating upstream by blowing boats on the Guadalupe River which flooded on July 4, 2025 in Comfort, Texas. Heavy rain caused flooding along the Guadalupe River in Central Texas with many deaths reported.
Image Eric Vryn/Getty
National weather services issued a warning of flash floods for Kerr County, where the river is located, around 1:14 am Friday.
The Guadalupe River rose 26 feet in 45 minutes that morning, Kerrville Mayor Joe Herring told reporters on Friday.
The first respondent looked for an area along the Guadalupe River which hit Flash Floods, Friday, July 4, 2025, in Kerrville, Texas.
Eric Gay/AP
“This comes at night, when people fall asleep in bed,” he said.
The river reached the second highest height in the record, exceeding the 1987 flood level, said the National Weather Service.
Lieutenant Governor and Patrick told reporters that it was up to the Mayor and the local district to evacuate if they felt the need and many were not sure where the storm would land.
At a press conference on Friday, Kerr Regency Judge Rob Kelly said County did not have a warning system in the river.
Kelly was pressed by a reporter why evacuation did not occur on Thursday, but the judge said, “We do not know this flood will come.”
A man surveyed debris along the Guadalupe River after flash floods hit the area, Friday, July 4, 2025, in Kerrville, Texas.
Eric Gay/AP
“We have floods all the time. This is the most dangerous river valley in the United States, and we are dealing with regular floods. When it rains, we get water. We have no reason to believe that this will be something like what happens here, there is nothing,” he said.
Rain continued to hit the area on Saturday, encouraging emergency warnings of flash floods for most of Burnet County and Western part of Williamson County and Travis County.
ABC News’ Emily Shapiro and Kyle Reiman contributed to this post.
