Four and a half months after the devastating Halloween floods, the county still doesn’t have a definitive buyout plan for all of the affected properties in the Bluff Springs Road area. After an hour of public discussion, and even more in executive session, Travis County Commissioners decided Tuesday they need more information, including current […]
Halloween Flood
A devastating flash flood that struck the Onion Creek area on October 31, 2013. At least five residents were killed.
Posted inEnvironment, Public Safety
Austin wins nearly $12 million in federal funds for Onion Creek
The City of Austin will receive $11.8 million in federal funding for the Onion Creek – Lower Colorado River Basin Project now that Congress finally loosened its purse strings and approved spending the money. The funds – which will be used to buy out properties and relocate displaced families from the Onion Creek flood […]
Posted inEnvironment, Local Government, Local Politics, Public Safety
Austin still needs nearly $100 million for flood plain buyout
Four months after raging floodwaters damaged and destroyed dozens of homes in the Onion Creek neighborhood in southeast Austin, city officials say it could cost between $80 million and $100 million to complete a buyout of homes in the flood plain and relocate the displaced families. Officials with the city’s Watershed Protection Department told […]
Posted inDevelopment, Environment, Local Government, Local Politics, Public Safety
County finds just $4.3 million to buy flood-ravaged homes
Travis County officials say they have searched their budgets, bond programs and possibly even the couch cushions to come up with $4.3 million to buy out damaged and destroyed homes from the Halloween floods. But it will be another week or two before County Commissioners will be get an estimate on just how much […]
Posted inPublic Safety
AFD calls for more rescue boats, improved notification systems
Just more than a month after the Halloween flood devastated parts of Austin and Travis County, Austin Fire Department representatives told the Public Safety Commission Monday that more rescue boats and an improved emergency notification system are needed to better respond to future natural disasters. AFD Chief of Staff Harry Evans stressed that the […]
Posted inLocal Government, Public Safety
County official says damage from Halloween flood likely underestimated
A Travis County official says that estimates of the damage from the Halloween flood may have been “grossly underestimated,” and further examination of the damage could bring the total high enough to trigger federal aid. Travis County Emergency Management Coordinator Pete Baldwin told Travis County Commissioners Tuesday that state and federal officials have further […]
Posted inDevelopment, Public Safety
City promises local funding for 115 homes destroyed by flooding
City officials are disputing charges made by an ad hoc relief group last week that funding may not be available to buy out 115 Onion Creek area homes damaged or destroyed in the Halloween floods. However, both City of Austin and Travis County officials say the wheels of government can sometimes move slowly, and […]
Posted inLocal Politics
City Council keeps it brief so staff can continue flood relief
The Austin City Council cut Thursday’s meeting short in order to allow city employees to continue with flood relief duties in the city, but they spent enough time on the dais to pass two significant measures for those affected by the rushing waters. Mayor Lee Leffingwell took a moment to note the two flood-related […]
Posted inDevelopment, Local Government, Local Politics, Public Safety
City, county to expand home buyouts for flooded areas
The City of Austin and Travis County are both preparing to expand their ongoing programs to buy and demolish the homes of residents who live in flood-prone areas. And with last week’s severe flooding in the Onion Creek 25-year flood plain, both the city and the county say they are stepping up their programs. […]
Posted inLocal Government, Public Safety
Local leaders file disaster declarations in hope of federal assistance
Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell, Travis County Judge Sam Biscoe, and Hays County Judge Bert Cobb have each filed local disaster declarations in the wake of massive flooding that struck Central Texas last week. The move could preface action by Texas Gov. Rick Perry that could also lead to a federal disaster declaration. In a […]
Posted inLocal Government, Public Safety, Uncategorized
City, county pour staff and materials into helping flood victims
On Sunday morning, In Fact Daily Editor Jo Clifton accompanied Council Member Laura Morrison on a drive to the flood-damaged Onion Creek Neighborhood. Residents of the hardest hit areas of this Southeast Austin neighborhood continue to sort ruined belongings from what may be salvageable after the devastating flood of Oct. 31. Meanwhile, 50 members […]
Posted inPublic Safety, Uncategorized
Austin, Central Texas to begin recovery from major flood event
People across the Central Texas region woke Thursday morning to a major flood that local officials say will likely go down as a record event. Some parts of South Austin and Hays County received almost 15 inches of rain, sending creeks out of their banks and people out of their homes ahead of the […]