Making sure Texas communities are better prepared for disasters like the deadly July 4 weekend flooding will be “at the top of the agenda” when state lawmakers return to Austin in the coming weeks, Gov. Greg Abbott said July 8.

“We're going to address every aspect of this storm to make sure that we're going to have in place the systems that are needed to prevent deadly flooding events like this in the future,” Abbott said during a news conference in Hunt, which is in Kerr County. “We want to make sure that we address what happened here—but at the same time, we want to make sure that we are able to implement measures that are going to prevent loss in other regions going forward.”

The latest

Abbott said first responders are searching for 161 missing people in Kerr County after at least 109 people across Central Texas were confirmed dead as a result of the flooding. Kerr County officials said during a separate news conference July 8 that they had not found any survivors since July 4.

Installing flood warning sirens and other infrastructure along the Guadalupe River could help prevent fatalities during future floods, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick told Community Impact on July 8.


“When a storm is going to hit you that quick, that fast and with that much ferocity, it's always going to be hard,” Patrick said in an interview. “One of the things that we want to do, and I think that can help, are sirens, so you have a cacophony of sound that would go off.”

Texas lawmakers are set to begin a 30-day special legislative session on July 21. Patrick, who leads the Texas Senate, said he expects lawmakers will fund emergency systems that can be installed “immediately” in communities along the Guadalupe River, noting that such systems can be expensive.

“In situations that are dealing with life and death, if a community can't do it, then the state should come in and do it. ... We should try and strive to do that before the next summer season,” Patrick said.

Legislative approach


Abbott said he expects Texas House and Senate lawmakers will form committees in the coming days to investigate “ways to address” the disaster. When asked who was to blame for the lives lost during the flooding, Abbott said assigning blame was “the word choice of losers.”

“The way winners talk is not to point fingers—they talk about solutions,” Abbott told reporters. “What Texas is all about is solutions.”

House Speaker Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, said lawmakers would speak with people impacted by the Central Texas floods before deciding which policies to pursue.

“It is too early to commit to... specifics until we actually talk to the members of the community and hear what they think, talk to the experts in the field, talk to the first responders. That's what legislative hearings are for,” Burrows said during the news conference. “We will synthesize what we get and we will come up with legislation that I believe will make it to the governor's desk and make us a stronger, better, more resilient Texas.”


In a July 7 social media post, Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, said he would file a bill aimed at installing civil defense sirens that could be used to quickly warn Texans when a flash flood begins. The sirens would be similar to tornado warning sirens, he said.

Bettencourt noted that some people disable or do not notice emergency alerts on their smartphones. In 2023, 17.5% of U.S. adults with working cellphones said they opted out of at least one type of wireless emergency alert, according to data collected by RAND, a nonprofit research organization that receives federal funding.

“In times of natural disaster, we must have a safeguard to ensure this kind of emergency is not ignored,” Bettencourt wrote.

Rep. Drew Darby, a San Angelo Republican who represents some of the communities impacted by the recent floods, asked Abbott to consider creating a “sophisticated” statewide emergency alert system in a July 8 letter.


“While no legislation passed this session would have prevented the heartbreaking loss of life in this particular instance or eased the grief so many have endured, these measures can help mitigate future harm, and ultimately, save lives in the face of future natural disasters,” Darby wrote.

During the regular legislative session, which ended June 2, Texas House lawmakers approved a bill that would have required emergency management officials to develop new emergency alert systems and consider implementing “outdoor warning sirens” to assist first responders during disasters. However, the proposal did not receive a hearing in the Texas Senate.

If that bill had passed, it would not have become law until Sept. 1.

How to get help


Texans should email [email protected] or call 830-258-1111 to provide information about people who remain missing as a result of the Hill Country floods, Abbott told reporters July 8. He encouraged Texans to provide “the best identification that you can,” including a person’s name, physical description and last known location, when reporting them as missing.Abbott said at least 161 people are missing in Kerr County, noting that state leaders and first responders “will not stop until every missing person is accounted for.”

According to the governor’s office, the following organizations are offering grief counseling to those impacted by the flooding:Officials said several state disaster recovery centers will open on the morning of July 9. Click here for more information about how to apply for recovery assistance and help those impacted by the floods.