Following the announcement of a nearly $2.5 million flood mitigation study and model for Coryell County in June, the Texas General Land Office (GLO) is granting around $1.5 million more toward the project.
The additional funds will provide an opportunity to enhance emergency response services and include parts of Bell County and Fort Cavazos in the study. During a Coryell County Commissioners Court meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 8, County Judge Roger Miller and President of Natural Resources Solutions (NRS) Steve Manning announced that the GLO invested additional funds into the study, which now totals nearly $4 million.
The purpose of the study is to build an automatic flood warning system that will alert local officials of incoming flood events and citizens of life-threatening flood hazards in real-time, according to a previous article by The Messenger.
Part of the additional funds will go toward implementing new communication software and technology for first responders, including local fire departments, the Coryell County Sheriff’s Office, and EMS teams and ambulances. Miller explains this includes a new GPS system for emergency vehicles that allows first responders to view real-time updates that shows which routes are open and if other local agencies are near the scene.
“Our ambulance can pull up a map and see what is open. Law enforcement and firefighters can see a map of where people are located and get a picture of who is where,” Miller said.
Miller said the technology does not only apply to flood events but can also be utilized in any emergency situation. While the public will not have access to the same technology as first responders, the flood warning system will eventually provide updates for the public that show which roads are passable during a flood event.
“The intent is to create a technology platform not just utilized by first responders but also the public,” Miller said.
The flood study focuses on the Leon River and Cowhouse Creek Watersheds – areas prone to flash flooding that impacts the county and its surrounding communities. The additional funds also allowed the research groups to expand and include all of Fort Cavazos and the Leon River Watershed in Bell County, Manning explains.
“This gives better resolution for modelling by including the downstream portion of the watershed,” Manning said in an email.
The grant funds were awarded to the Texas A&M AgriLife Blackland Research & Extension Center in Temple and the American Conservation Foundation (ACF) to help prevent and plan for future flood events in the county. NRS is a consulting firm working with ACF on the project.
The study will also help develop surface and groundwater models that will use local data on lakes, creeks, and underground water sources like aquifers to help predict current and future flood events. The models will also be used to build the flood warning system.
Miller said the additional money stems from leftover federal funds from flood events in 2015 and 2016, which Coryell County is eligible for.
The flood study is a joint effort between several government agencies and regional organizations. It is of no cost to the county.
If the project is successful, Miller said the state could use it as a model for other rural counties.
“The intent is to follow up with TDEM (Texas Division of Emergency Management) and get them tied into this because it very well could be that what we’re trying to develop here in Coryell County could be a model that the state could pick up and utilize for rural counties throughout the state,” Miller said. “Because there is no way that the rurals can afford something like this on their own.”