FEMA records show Kerr County officials did not use FEMA’s system to send warnings to phones in the critical hours as the flooding began on July 4.

Since 2016, the topic of a "flood warning system" for Kerr County has come up at 20 different county commissioners' meetings, according to minutes. The idea for a system was first introduced by Kerr County Commissioner Thomas Moser and Emergency Management Coordinator Dub Thomas in March 2016.

In the last nine years, federal funding for a system has been denied to the county as it contends with a tax base hostile to government overspending.

A Flash Flood Emergency and numerous Flash Flood Warnings were issued in Central Texas on Sunday morning after torrential rain led to the rapid rise of the Lampasas River.

A Kerrville-area river authority executed a contract for a flood warning system that would have been used to help with emergency response, local officials said.

Over 12,000 volunteers have already assisted in Kerr County, according to the Texas Division of Emergency Management.

KERR COUNTY, Texas — Kerr County leaders debated the issue of installing emergency sirens along the Guadalupe River nearly a decade ago, but one former official said there was pushback from some residents.

Residents say Kerr County’s use of CodeRED alerts was sporadic and inconsistent. Local officials have not answered questions about when and how they utilized the system, which has been in place since 2009.

FEMA records show officials in Kerr County, Texas, did not use FEMA's system to send warnings to phones in the hours as the flooding began on July 4.

Kerr County officials reportedly failed to activate a powerful public alert system that could have saved lives before last week’s devastating flood.The Washington Post revealed that despite having the technology to turn every mobile phone in the river valley into a loud alarm,