Flash Flood — Kimble, Texas

2018-10-08 · near Telegraph, Kimble, Texas

Event narrative

Some rural residents were trapped in their homes by a major flash flood on the S. Llano River and Cedar Creek, in some cases requiring them to be rescued. Others awoke to find water in their homes and were able to evacuate themselves.

The Above and Beyond RV Resort, located adjacent to the South Llano River, was completely flooded, washing RVs and motor vehicles down stream, trapping people who sought refuge in trees in the park, and carrying some down the river. First responders who arrived at the scene before daylight, heard people, who they were unable to see in trees and on top of RVs, calling for help. They threw life preservers to the victims in the water.

Miraculously, a woman who was staying at the RV park was carried about 23 river miles downstream before being rescued near Yates Crossing. She was slightly injured. At least two others were injured.

Old Cedar Creek flows into the South Llano River just a few hundred yards above the park. In the early hours of Monday morning, the normally small creek came expanded to 300 yards in size and poured volumes of water into the S. Llano. This water seemed to have arrived just prior to the wall of water from the South Llano. Rescue workers said they could hear the sound of a roar with a wall of water coming down the river.

Authorities have reported that 40-45 people were evacuated and 19 people were rescued by helicopter or swift water rescue boats. There were three men and one woman who drowned. Some of these victims did all they could to help others evacuate the RV Park.

Cost of road damage was estimated at 9 million dollars. Damage to property was unknown.

Wider weather episode

Upper level disturbances interacted with plenty of gulf moisture to produce rounds of very heavy rain. In fact, very heavy rainfall moved north into Kimble County from Edwards County, up the South Llano River watershed area during the early morning hours of Monday, October 8.

About eight to 12 inches of rain fell on already saturated ground, causing major flooding over the banks of Cedar Creek and the South Llano River. A ranging flash flood on the South Llano flooded out an RV Park located on the South Llano River in Junction, drowning four campers. The water level at the RV Park on the South Llano River was estimated at around 21 feet. Earlier in the morning, the South Llano River at telegraph had risen to 35 feet before the gauge failed. The gauge reading at the Llano River near Junction measured 31.53 feet on October 8.

Additional heavy rain fell across West Central Texas and resulted in flooding and flash flooding across the area. The following counties received a Presidential Disaster Declaration for the September through October flooding: Brown, Callahan, Edwards, Haskell, Jones, Kimble, Mason, Nolan, San Saba, Shackelord, Sutton, Taylor and Throckmorton.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (30.4048, -99.8828)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 788080. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.