Local officials in one of the hardest-hit counties have still revealed little about what, if any, actions they took to safeguard residents, tourists, and visitors in an area known as “flash flood alley.

A former official from Kerr County Texas, said that the community was not in favour of putting up outdoor emergency sirens in 2017 and that the federal grant for them failed to be approved due to a lack of funding.

Floodwaters are finally receding in Kerr County and Williamson County, Texas, revealing a landscape dramatically altered by days of relentless storms. Uprooted trees, eroded trailers and debris-strewn riverbanks now tell the story of just how powerful — and fast — this flooding took over.