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Bandera County River Authority and Groundwater District General Manager Dave Mauk speaks to county commissioners.
Photo by Jessica Nohealapa’ahi
January 23, 2026
Plans underway to upgrade county flood warning system
By Jessica Nohealapa’ahi
The Bandera Prophet
Bandera County commissioners approved a resolution accepting financial assistance from the Texas Water Development Board authorizing execution of a grant agreement up to $1.25 million to fund the installation of an outdoor warning siren system.
“The leadership in Austin wants this done pretty quickly,” Bandera County Judge Richard Evans said. “We’ve been working on this for 20 years - river gages, flood gages…”
A lot was learned after the July 4 floods, Bandera County River Authority and Groundwater District General Manager David Mauk said.
“Judge Evans has really been out in front of this,” Mauk said. “It was hard to get traction with the drought.”
Mauk said BCRAGD is dedicated to getting flood warning systems in, however the cost of USGS gages has doubled since the district’s last purchase. He said he considered a third-party vendor, but was concerned about longevity.
“USGS is pretty dependable,” Mauk said. “If we don’t have them, we probably won’t have a federal government.”
Pct. 4 Commissioner Jody Rutherford said a siren system would only work for downtown Bandera, not the entirety of the county.
“We’re going to need some sirens, there’s no doubt about that,” Evans said, adding items that complement sirens, such as river and rain gages, and upgraded indicators were also needed.
Mauk said the groundwater district had set funds aside for placing gages and sirens, in case the grant falls through.
“My board has already given me a directive, we’ve already begun working on it. We put money in the budget,” Mauk said. “The governor wants to see this done…we’re in the [flash flood alley] line - us, Kerr County, Kendall County. These [floods] are predictable - not the day and time, but they will happen. Our droughts are typically broken by the flood, but this one wasn’t.”
Evans said Bandera County is slated to receive $1 million.
“First we need to apply, get earmarked so they don’t give it to somebody else. Then we can work out the logistics,” Evans said.
In other business, Pct. 3 Commissioners Jack Moseley said he would like to to see the county’s HR department as a stand alone office.
“It’s the most sensitive department we have. Payroll, insurance, workman’s comp…if an employee has a sensitive issue, they need to discuss that in private. If an employee has a complaint, they need somewhere to go where not everyone will know what they’re talking about,” Moseley said. “I would like to have this approved and effective Oct. 1.”
Evans said the new facility, which is expected to be open next month, has enough space to accommodate an independent office for HR.
“The leadership in Austin wants this done pretty quickly,” Bandera County Judge Richard Evans said. “We’ve been working on this for 20 years - river gages, flood gages…”
A lot was learned after the July 4 floods, Bandera County River Authority and Groundwater District General Manager David Mauk said.
“Judge Evans has really been out in front of this,” Mauk said. “It was hard to get traction with the drought.”
Mauk said BCRAGD is dedicated to getting flood warning systems in, however the cost of USGS gages has doubled since the district’s last purchase. He said he considered a third-party vendor, but was concerned about longevity.
“USGS is pretty dependable,” Mauk said. “If we don’t have them, we probably won’t have a federal government.”
Pct. 4 Commissioner Jody Rutherford said a siren system would only work for downtown Bandera, not the entirety of the county.
“We’re going to need some sirens, there’s no doubt about that,” Evans said, adding items that complement sirens, such as river and rain gages, and upgraded indicators were also needed.
Mauk said the groundwater district had set funds aside for placing gages and sirens, in case the grant falls through.
“My board has already given me a directive, we’ve already begun working on it. We put money in the budget,” Mauk said. “The governor wants to see this done…we’re in the [flash flood alley] line - us, Kerr County, Kendall County. These [floods] are predictable - not the day and time, but they will happen. Our droughts are typically broken by the flood, but this one wasn’t.”
Evans said Bandera County is slated to receive $1 million.
“First we need to apply, get earmarked so they don’t give it to somebody else. Then we can work out the logistics,” Evans said.
In other business, Pct. 3 Commissioners Jack Moseley said he would like to to see the county’s HR department as a stand alone office.
“It’s the most sensitive department we have. Payroll, insurance, workman’s comp…if an employee has a sensitive issue, they need to discuss that in private. If an employee has a complaint, they need somewhere to go where not everyone will know what they’re talking about,” Moseley said. “I would like to have this approved and effective Oct. 1.”
Evans said the new facility, which is expected to be open next month, has enough space to accommodate an independent office for HR.