Delay in Kerr County's Emergency Alert Response Unveiled

On an early Friday morning at 4:22 a.m., a firefighter situated in Ingram, a location upstream from Kerrville in Texas' Hill Country, made a request to the Kerr County Sheriff's Office for an emergency alert to be issued, as captured in dispatch recordings secured by KSAT, an ABC affiliate. However, it took nearly six hours for the county officials to act on this request.

The firefighter reported over the dispatch that high waters were submerging the Guadalupe Schumacher sign on State Highway 39. "Could we possibly send a CodeRED alert to the residents in Hunt to either evacuate to higher ground or remain at home?" they queried.

In response, a dispatcher from the Kerr County Sheriff's Office conveyed that the action required supervisory approval before proceeding.

The first notification through Kerr County's CodeRED system was not issued until an hour and a half later. Some residents did not receive messages until past 10 a.m., by which time a significant number of individuals had already been affected by the rising waters.

The Sheriff's Office of Kerr County did not immediately provide a comment on the situation.

Official Response and Historical Context

During a press briefing on Wednesday morning, Sheriff Larry Leitha of Kerr County refrained from discussing the emergency alert delay. He assured that a post-operational review would be conducted following the conclusion of current search and rescue operations.

Kerr County has been utilizing the CodeRED Emergency Notification System, designed to deliver emergency alerts via recorded phone messages, for at least ten years. According to a 2014 press statement, when CodeRED initially launched in collaboration with the City of Kerrville, it claimed to be capable of notifying the entire jurisdiction of emergencies within minutes.

To ensure receipt of alerts, residents were required to register, as the system relied on local white pages for contact information, leading to advisories that one's number inclusion should not be presumed.

In 2021, the CodeRED system was integrated with FEMA's Integrated Public Alert & Warning System (IPAWS) to ensure that warnings would reach individuals not registered in local databases, such as visitors. This system enables local authorities to broadcast urgent messages to all mobile phones in the vicinity.

Debate and Implementation Concerns

Some county officials were initially uncertain about incorporating IPAWS. Kerr County Commissioner Jonathan Letz questioned the system's advantages at a commission meeting in May 2021.

Emergency Management Coordinator William "Dub" Thomas responded, highlighting the system as an additional method to inform the public during emergencies.

Former Commissioner Harley David Belew opposed the integration due to the necessity of replacing equipment, a task he had undertaken recently following a federal policy update.

Nonetheless, Kerr County adopted IPAWS alongside CodeRED in 2021 despite these apprehensions.

Ingram City Council Member Ray Howard shared with ABC News that he received multiple flash flood alerts from the National Weather Service, yet none from Kerr County during the recent flooding.

On a radio appearance on The Michael Berry Show, Belew discussed the topic of early warning systems, revealing past considerations hindered by inadequate cell tower coverage in rural areas—a plan abandoned prior to his presence in the meetings.

Belew mentioned funding challenges for these systems, a concern echoed during previous county commissioner meetings. However, despite the tragic events, he cautioned against potential government waste but acknowledged the community's need for an efficient early warning mechanism for peace of mind.