While Kerr County officials say they didn’t know how bad the July 4 flooding would be, it warned residents nearly eight years ago to “be flood aware” about the ongoing potential

The number of people reported missing in Kerr County, Texas, as a result of last week’s flash floods continues to soar. Authorities say search teams combing through the debris and destruction there are looking for more than 160 people who disappeared in the raging waters.

Climate scientists and weather experts are clear: the deadly floods in Texas earlier this month were an entirely natural tragedy, with off-the-charts rainfall levels coming from lingering moisture from a nearby tropical storm feeding off a steamy Gulf of America.

Kerr County officials, who have come under increasing scrutiny for their actions as the Guadalupe River began to flood, eventually sent text-message alerts that morning to residen

A "Basic Plan" for emergency response for three Texas counties labeled flash flooding as having a "major" impact on public safety, according to a page on a city website.