Flash Flooding and Flooding in Texas, October 30 to 31, 2013

Thunderstorms produced heavy rain that led to flash flooding sending one foot of water over South Hausman Rd. at a low water crossing near Helotes. The 24 hour rainfall in the area ranged from 3.02 to 4.08 inches.

The Comal County Engineer's Office website reported that portions of Smithson Valley Road had nearly 3 feet of water over it in spots. Low water crossings were flooded across other portions of Comal and Hays Counties.

Thunderstorms produced heavy rain that led to flash flooding in Pflugerville. Four feet of water swept cars off Grand Avenue Parkway which necessitated two swift water rescues. A CoCoRaHS observer in the area reported 5.72 inches of rain in the 24 hours ending at 7AM.

Across Round Rock and the northern sections of Williamson County, heavy rain fell much of the night with areas reporting up to 10 inches of rain. At the peak of the flooding there were 23 areas closed due to high water. Several homes along Brushy Creek were evacuated. Houses were damaged over the eastern portions along the Highway 79 corridor including Forest Creek, Hutto, and the County Road 123 area. Voluntary evacuations were called for in eastern Round Rock and Hutto. 88 homes were evacuated. Several swift water rescues were performed including 8 vehicle rescues. Overall 19 homes were affected by flooding rains in Williamson County with overall damages hit 1.1 million dollars in uninsured losses to public infrastructure.

There were numerous roads closed and water rescues in and around Pflugerville. There were rainfall reports of over 8 inches of rain during the late evening hours up through 1am.

Thunderstorms produced heavy rain that led to flash flooding in Comal County. People were evacuated along River Road in New Braunfels, and near Spring Branch, Elm Creek was running 40 to 50 feet wide where it is normally about four feet. The 24 hour rainfall in the River Rd. area ranged from 3.81 to 6.58 inches while in the Spring Branch area there was between 10.40 and 11.75 inches. A man fell into the Guadalupe River near the horseshoe just down from Canyon Dam. The man was trying to retrieve some equipment while the river was quickly rising. The 26 year old drown and his body was recovered a few days later. Portions of River Road just west of New Braunfels became flooded between 1 and 2 am in the morning.

Heavy rains in excess of 14 inches upstream of Austin in the Onion Creek Watershed near Wimberley caused a flash flood that hit portions of South Austin in the early morning hours. Water started to rise and flood portions of the Onion Creek area near Interstate 35 by 4-5am on the morning of the 31st and water continued to rise into the early morning hours. USGS gauges were overtopped near Twin Creek Road and this record flood water continued to move along Onion creek, passing under I-35 and inundating several neighborhoods between I-35 and US Highway 183. A reverse 911 was utilized by the City of Austin to help evacuate residents but flood waters rose so quickly that most residents sheltered in place and were rescued by truck and helicopter later that morning. Those that tried to escape the flood waters via their vehicles got caught in the rising waters and this led to several fatalities. A mother and infant son died when their SUV vehicle was swept off the Onion Creek bridge on Bluff Springs Road in the predawn hours around 430 am. Another resident in a neighborhood along Onion Creek was also found drowned as his vehicle got swept off the road and was recovered near Pleasant Valley Drive and William Cannon. Almost 2 weeks later the body of a homeless man was found in Williamson Creek near South First Street and Heartwood. He was presumed a flood fatality from this event. Manual readings were performed by USGS at the Onion Creek/Highway 183 gauge site ATIT2. The creek crested just over 40 feet at 930 am the morning of October 31st. This was a new record height for this location and translated to about 135,000 cubic feet per second. In total across Travis County and the City of Austin, over 700 homes were damaged by the flooding, of which over 100 were destroyed. Most of the affected homes did not have insurance and were within the 100 year flood plain of Onion Creek. Flood recovery lasted for several weeks including debris removal. Damage estimates are still being calculated as of this writing but damages across Travis County and the City of Austin look like they will exceed 100 million dollars.

Bastrop County Emergency Management reported that there was flooding on sections of Highway 812 between State Highway 21 and Elroy Road.

Thunderstorms produced heavy rain that led to flash flooding in Wimberley, San Marcos, Buda, and Kyle. Public reports of 14 inches of rain fell near Wimberley and this rainfall made its way into the Blanco River Watershed and the Onion Creek Watershed. Rainfall totals near Bude and Kyle were upwards of 8-10 inches. The Blanco River flooded and major flooding occurred downstream to San Marcos. The Blanco River crested at 26.74 feet in Wimberley. The Blanco River USGS gauge at Kyle crested at 35.92 feet. Flooding then occurred in the San Marcos River as the flood wave crossed I-35 and flooded areas near Martindale in Caldwell County. Reports indicate that the Blanco River was near or slightly higher than the 1998 flood of record. Sections of San Marcos flooded near the Blanco River including areas of Texas State University and areas along River Road where several evacuations of residences occurred. The Blanco River was 100 feet out of its banks. In many areas along the Blanco River, debris was found 15 to 20 feet up. Several roads needed repair and several homes were flooded out. Across Hays County, 47 homes sustained minor damage, 24 sustained major damage, and one home was destroyed. Four businesses sustained major damage including the Buda Fire Department station and Buda Elementary.

A thunderstorm produced a lightning strike that caused a structural fire.

A thunderstorm produced a lightning strike that caused a structural fire.

A thunderstorm produced a lightning strike that caused a structural fire.

Caldwell County reported several flooded roads during the morning hours including FM 1979 at the San Marcos River, Old Colony Line Road, and FM 86. A flash flood fatality occurred near Track Road and FM 20 East when a 51 year old teacher at Smithville Junior High was driving to work and his car was swept off the road. His body was recovered later that day.

Thunderstorms produced heavy rain that led to flash flooding in Wimberley. Observers reported 12.45 to 14.01 inches of rain in the 24 hours ending at 7AM. This flooded a workshop with one half inch of water. A citizen estimated the river level near the confluence of the Blanco River and Cypress Creek was higher than that of the 1998 flood.

After a night of heavy rain, runoff into the San Marcos River sent a flood wave downstream. Below San Marcos there was flooding at the Pecan Park Campground. Farther downstream the river sent water over FM1979 closing the road, and there was a swift water rescue at FM 1977 near Staples. There were 21 homes destroyed across Caldwell County, 20 of which were mobile homes. Most of the homes that were damaged and destroyed were uninsured.

A truck drove around a barricade at Brushy Creek on Polonia Road. The truck became submerged and the driver was able to escape unharmed. The passenger was not able to escape and got swept downstream. The body of the female passenger, age 57, was found more than a week later.