A grant from the Texas Water Development Board could allow Williamson County officials to purchase and install $1 million of flood warning equipment in areas vulnerable to flash floods.
What happened
Commissioners approved the grant agreement at a Feb. 10 meeting, allowing the Office of Emergency Management to start project plans.
The grant could provide outdoor warning sirens, flood gauges and sensors as well as communication software testing training, County Emergency Management Director Bruce Clements said at the meeting.
“It's really looking at a holistic system—it’s not just buying a siren, it’s buying the detection equipment [and] the coordination piece of that,” Clements said.
The OEM will identify locations most prone to flooding in the county to come up with a project proposal for the grant. Proposals are due to the TWDB by Dec. 31.
“It goes beyond just looking at what areas are prone to flooding,” Clements said. “We're looking at the most vulnerable populations in those areas.”
There is no local match requirement for the grant.
Why now?
TWDB is administering the program pursuant to Senate Bill 3 and Senate Bill 5, which awarded flood prevention grants to 30 counties. Grants will be dispersed after project plans are submitted.
“I just want to commend Bruce and our entire OEM staff [going] back to the floods in July. All the excellent work they did to protect life and property was amazing,” County Judge Steven Snell said.
