City of Ingram Mayor signs disaster declaration to request help from the state after flash flood damage

INGRAM, Texas — Kerr county officials said the City of Ingram was the hardest hit by heavy rains on Tuesday leaving massive infrastructure ruined.

The mayor of Ingram has signed a disaster declaration to request help from the state. This would help repair roads, sewage systems and over a dozen homes affected by the flash floods.

Residents are now picking up the pieces in Ingram, towing trucks out of trees where they had floated away and rebuilding fences knocked over by rushing water.

“We live in flash flood alley and when it hits the roadway, it just rips the surface right off of it,” Kerr County Emergency Management Coordinator William Thomas said.

At one point Tuesday, Thomas said the storm surge of the Guadalupe river hit four feet. The water continues to be a problem as Guadalupe State Park officials posted to Instagram that people still can’t swim in the river as of Wednesday.

Stuart Gross with Ingram Code Enforcement said a clean-up was planned for this weekend along the river but that has been cancelled.

“We’re just trying to assess the amount of damage… When FEMA comes back, we want to get them a fair answer,” Gross said.

For the past two days, Gross and the Red Cross have been canvasing all over Ingram to ensure everyone is safe. Luckily there were no injuries in these floods and only one high water rescue.

“As the water recedes, we’ll look at some of the low water crossings on county roads… If it’s something the county has to fix… We’ll do a disaster declaration for the entire county,” Thomas said.

Residents, along with city and county officials now just have to sit, wait and assess the damage to see what help is needed and what help will be given.

As for the weekend, Thomas said they are expecting storms but nothing as bad as Tuesday.

He asks everyone to clear debris from creeks to mitigate flooding.

“The ground is already saturated so we still want people to be careful,” Thomas said.

Being careful means turning around if you see flood waters to avoid drowning. Going into the weekend, he and others want people to be aware.