Graveyard Point homeowners are preparing for flooding as Lake Travis continues to rise (KXAN Photo/ Todd Bynum)
The 3.1 inches of rain that fell into the Pedernales River near Johnson
City early Thursday morning is making its way into Lake Travis, which
means numerous homes at Graveyard Point are in danger of flooding.
The
Lower Colorado River Authority says the peak Lake Travis crest will be
at 692 feet above mean sea level by Saturday; mobile homes next to the
lake start flooding at 688 feet above mean sea level. KXAN’s First
Warning Weather Team says the lake will reach 689 feet above mean sea
level as early as late Thursday afternoon.
The last time
homeowners in Graveyard Point saw major flooding was in 2007, after the
Marble Falls “rain bomb.” Over 20 inches of rain poured down over the
area in just a few hours.
“It’s coming up little by little,” Lorri Lowden says. Lowden is at
Graveyard Point helping a family friend and his elderly wife move out
before their home is under water.
According to LCRA, temporary
and mobile homes in Graveyard Point flood at 688 feet, and at 691 feet,
permanent homes begin flooding. Lowden’s friend’s home has his back
steps at 687 feet. For them it’s something they’ve experienced before,
but for others, it’s the first time.
“Some people might think
they deserve to be flooded because they should have never have live
there in the first place that is a really cruel thing to say,” Kennie
Hull says, she moved in days ago and now she’s being flooded out.
Hull says the LCRA is not doing enough to notify residents, but LCRA
says they keep everyone up to date on flood gate operations. LCRA says
it’s up to the city or county to let people know when they have to move
out.
“It’s a really dire situation where the people need to know
so that they don’t lose all their belongings that they have,” Hull says.
Lake
Travis isn’t the only Highland Lake inundated with water. The LCRA
opened a second floodgate at Buchanan Dam around 8 a.m., a third one
around 11 a.m. and a fourth one around 1 p.m. The LCRA is also closing
Inks Lake, Lake Marble Falls and Lake LBJ to recreational boating.
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