Travis County officials told the commissioners court on Aug. 19 they are continuing recovery operations in northwest portions of the county after the July severe-weather and flooding event, including temporary bridges and large-scale debris removal while agencies work to connect residents with federal assistance.

County Executive for Emergency Services Chuck Brotherton and Transportation and Natural Resources (TNR) staff said the county has leased and purchased temporary steel platforms to maintain access across compromised low-water crossings and bridges. Cynthia McDonald, County Executive for Transportation and Natural Resources, said a 70-foot, 12-foot-wide steel platform is being leased to create a temporary crossing on a private roadway (Sunset Ranch) and that a purchased temporary bridge is due to arrive this week for Sandy Creek access. Emily Ackland, Natural Resources and Environmental Quality, reported 107,066 cubic yards of debris removed to date from rights-of-way, private property and the Sandy Creek waterway, and said 85 right-of-entry forms have been collected with 28 properties cleared so far.

Why it matters: county staff said restoring safe access and clearing debris are critical to residents’ recovery and to allowing contractors and heavy equipment to reach damaged properties. Officials also said assistance programs, application deadlines and insurance rules are creating urgent timelines for some homeowners.

County staff described a layered approach to keeping roads passable. Brotherton said the leased 70-foot span is intended to allow passenger vehicles and heavy equipment to cross if the low-water crossings become impassable, and the county has arranged access with the Sunset Ranch property owners. McDonald said final design plans for Sandy Creek repairs were received and solicited from contractors, and TNR crews expect to complete repairs on Cottonwood Trail by Sept. 1; Juniper Trail repairs will be contracted out.

On debris and property access, Ackland said 32 of the right-of-entry forms are staged for contractor removal, and the county is meeting with state partners and contractors about vehicle removal and future debris management in Cow Creek and Sandy Creek.

County staff and the floodplain manager also briefed the court on resident assistance and federal aid. Sean Snyder, Travis County floodplain manager, said floodplain staff are at Round Mountain Baptist Church daily to help impacted residents with permitting and questions and that about 18 residents have come to speak with staff so far. County Health and Human Services (HHS) said it has staffed the Round Mountain disaster assistance center seven days a week, hired an additional social or casework staffer immediately after court approval, and is hiring a bilingual caseworker for longer-term coverage.

Officials described complexity and time pressure around federal programs. Staff explained differences between FEMA individual assistance and SBA loans and their flood-insurance requirements; county staff advised residents to check floodsmart.gov and consult insurance agents about preferred risk policies and Risk Rating 2 options. County staff also warned that some FEMA and SBA assistance carries requirements to obtain flood insurance for a period after receiving funds and that the FEMA application deadline for certain programs was approaching in early September. Staff urged residents in affected ZIP codes to apply for FEMA and other available assistance.

Funding and county budget actions: Travis Galvin of the Planning and Budget Office said the court transferred $7,952,000 from the county’s emergency reserve into emergency response earlier in the month; later the county received and budgeted $4,463,227.12 in FEMA reimbursements tied to COVID expenses, which restored that amount to the reserve. Galvin cautioned that those amounts do not cover the full scope of expected expenses.

Public outreach and resource coordination: the county’s public information office reported intensive communications and resource coordination, and staff asked to post concise flood-insurance guidance and lists of local resources on county social media and websites. Staff and commissioners discussed adding ITS hardware and volunteers at the Round Mountain site to help residents complete FEMA and other assistance forms on-site.

Ending: County officials said cleanup and repairs are active and evolving; they urged residents to apply for federal assistance before stated deadlines and said the county will continue to coordinate contractors, temporary access measures and community outreach as work progresses.