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Heavy rainfall leads to flooding at Austin, Travis County lakes
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Water from the Colorado River pours over the Max Starcke Dam, Tuesday Oct. 16, 2018, in Marble Falls, Texas. The Llano and Colorado rivers meet at Kingsland and the National Weather Service said both were experiencing “major flooding.” A flash flood warning was in effect. (Amanda Voisard/Austin American-Statesman via AP) lessWater from the Colorado River pours over the Max Starcke Dam, Tuesday Oct. 16, 2018, in Marble Falls, Texas. The Llano and Colorado rivers meet at Kingsland and the National Weather Service said both were … more
Photo: Amanda Voisard, Associated Press
![Water pours over the Max Starcke Dam as waters continue to rise on Tuesday Oct. 16, 2018, in Marble Falls, TX. [Amanda Voisard/AMERICAN-STATESMAN] Photo: Amanda Voisard, [Amanda Voisard/AMERICAN-STATESM / [Amanda Voisard/AMERICAN-STATESM](https://www.weatherpreppers.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/920x920-122.jpg)
Water from the Colorado River pours over the Max Starcke Dam, Tuesday Oct. 16, 2018, in Marble Falls, Texas. The Llano and Colorado rivers meet at Kingsland and the National Weather Service said both were experiencing “major flooding.” A flash flood warning was in effect. (Amanda Voisard/Austin American-Statesman via AP) less
Water from the Colorado River pours over the Max Starcke Dam, Tuesday Oct. 16, 2018, in Marble Falls, Texas. The Llano and Colorado rivers meet at Kingsland and the National Weather Service said both were … more
Photo: Amanda Voisard, Associated Press
The recent heavy rains in Central Texas have led to major flooding for lakes and rivers in the region.
After a record-breaking amount of rainfall in September and even more rain in October, the area is becoming a “saturated sponge,” according to National Weather Service meteorologist Paul Yura.
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The Guadalupe River near Comfort was able to avoid the major flood stage, but it still stood at 24.3 feet as of 3 p.m., within the range of the minor flood stage.
The runoff and flooding caused by the heavy rains have led to several waterway and lake closures in Austin and Travis County.
At least four roads are closed due to flooding in the Lake Travis area, and boat ramps are all shut down, according to Travis County Emergency Services. At Lake Travis, runoff was causing the lake to rise at a foot-and-a-half an hour, Yura said.
Other lakes that are closed include lakes Austin, Ladybird, Marble Falls, Lyndon B. Johnson, Inks and Buchanan.
Yura said the flooding will continue to cause issues in those areas for roughly a week.
Fares Sabawi covers crime in San Antonio and Bexar County for mySA.com. Read more of his stories here. | fsabawi@mysa.com | Twitter: @FaresInSA