Flooding on the Guadalupe River prompted urgent 911 calls, with people trapped and several confirmed dead as water levels rose on July 4.
KENDALL COUNTY, Texas — When word started to spread that Kerr County was being ravaged by flooding on the Guadalupe River early July 4, many people downstream in Kendall County knew they were next.
A review of calls to their 911 dispatch center reveals that numerous people called, asking for details on when the waters might rise.
One man went further, saying he was concerned for onlookers who were putting themselves at risk just trying to see if the water had made it downstream yet.
“They’re walking down under that big bridge to see the water to come in and… I can see where they’re about to lose lives,” the man said. “I was like y’all need to get away from this. This river it’s coming right now!”
The caller said people who wanted to take pictures were doing so in spite of the risk.
Others called looking for advice about how much time they had to make a run for it, or if they should leave at all.
In Comfort, one caller said “I just got woke up by emergency vehicle driving up and down my road on 7th Street in Comfort telling me to be or telling those along the creek to be prepared to evacuate.”
She went on to say she had been monitoring conditions and had not seen a rise but she wanted more details noting “I don’t like playing with this stuff.”
Still, she worried about the details of her regular routine, saying “Do I have that much time? Do I go in my pajamas? Do I take a shower first? How much time do I have? I don’t even have jeans. They need to be put in the dryer. I washed them last night.”
The woman seemed comforted when she was told the water was probably more than one hour away.
“The Guadalupe River is right across from my house,” one woman in Waring said. “I mean, is it gonna get that bad over here in where, like, we have to leave?”
The call taker replied that some people in Comfort were being notified they might need to evacuate but “they have not said anything about Waring yet.”
One man with three daughters in the area called saying he couldn’t be there in person and he was worried for their safety.
“I’m in another part of the state and I heard about some really bad river flooding down there,” the man said, asking if there had been casualties. “We got one report that they was expecting a 30 foot crest on the river. Well, I was like, ‘Whoa that’s a pretty bad flood out there.'”
The man said he was worried because he couldn’t reach family members by telephone.
As the danger approached, the dispatcher told a unit in the field “Comfort Fire called. They said they received a call from Kerr County advising that the water is on the rise, should be here in about 4 to 6 hours and they’re requesting, no, they’re stating that we need to close all crossings.”
Asking for clarification, the man asked if they specified which crossings and the reply was: “They just said all of them.”
When water levels started to rise and overtake dwellings, the calls obviously became more urgent, with one woman saying: “We’re in the Airbnb and our cabins flooded and we have a 2-year-old baby.”
She told the call taker two of their vehicles had already floated away and they couldn’t escape. When the caller asked if help was on the way in a boat, the reply was: “They’re working on it.”
When the same party called again, the caller went on to say seven people were at risk and the dispatcher replied: “We’ve got people that are heading that way, OK? We also have a male that’s in a tree, so we’re trying to get to all of y’all.”
At one point, the dispatcher said the caller was being transferred to Kerr County but when the call transferred, a pre-recorded message said the caller had reached Gillespie County public safety dispatch.
A dispatcher there promised to look into the matter but the Guadalupe River does not flow through Gillespie County.
At 8:49 a.m. a caller said on Highway 27 near Center Point, a man was in the top of a tree in the middle of the river. The recording indicates the caller was transferred to Kerr County.
The call reached a pre-recorded message but eventually a call taker answered the line and said there were problems with the highway being blocked by high water both east and west of the problem area.
At the time stamp of 9:02 a.m. a frantic woman said: “I just called just now for the Comfort area. We really need somebody. My boyfriend is currently stuck in a tree out on the current.”
The response was “Yes ma’am, they know about it and they’re getting, they’re on their way, OK? They’re coming as fast as they can, I promise.”
In another call time stamped at 9:21 a.m. someone in the field tells the dispatcher they do have the man in view and they are trying to work their way to him.
“So y’all just take a deep breath. Y’all take a deep breath and just know that they’re working their way over there, OK?” the dispatcher said.
As the water failed to relent, the calls took a tragic turn when people started discovering the lost, with one person recovered in the Waring area.
“We have located a body. It’s definitely going to be a drowned victim or a flood victim,” the caller said, adding it would be impossible to get to the victim by ground as the rugged terrain had been heavily damaged by the flood. “It sounds like we might have to get a helicopter to go pull it out of where it’s at.”
And finally, the calls began to the people some call the “last responders,” the funeral personnel and other professionals who ensure dignity in death.
Funeral home personnel were directed to several remote sites where people were recovered miles downstream from where they were swept away.
In every case, the response was the same, that they would arrive as soon as possible.
Several calls indicated there would be challenges with identifying the remains but in an effort to get information to survivors as soon as possible, one ranger asked for pictures of a wedding ring.
The ranger told the funeral home worker “We’re just trying to maybe get a tentative identification over here at the command post.”