Four hours into the Texas Legislature’s opening hearing on this month’s deadly flooding — as lawmakers praised state responders and thanked volunteers — state Rep. Ann Johnson interjected with frustration.
“The reason this select committee’s formed is because 137 people are dead, including a number of 8-year-old little girls out of camp,” the Democrat said. “This is not a normal hearing. This is not a normal attaboy for the agencies and [looking at] what went right.
“Our honest, genuine question — that families across Texas are demanding — is what do we need to do better, or what went wrong?”
Texas lawmakers didn’t land on a simple answer during the marathon, inaugural meeting of the Texas state House and Senate’s select committees on disaster preparedness and flooding. They won’t hear from local officials until next week’s field hearing in Kerrville, one of the hardest-hit areas of the July 4 flooding across central Texas’ Hill Country. Local officials are in charge of evacuation orders, flood preparations and emergency response.
