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s we reported in June, it has been a very wet year – with Sullivan County and surrounding areas seeing upwards of 18 inches of rain from January 1 to June 11. As anyone who wanted to hold an outdoor event knows, it rained almost every weekend. 

Higher-than-average rainfall and other major weather events are happening across the country, from Hurricane Helene in North Carolina in September 2024 to the recent flooding in Central Texas and now New Mexico. Our hearts are with those who lost their lives and their family members, as the death toll rises to 111 with at least 173 people still missing. 

In an almost unimaginable feat, the Guadalupe River in Kerr County rose 26 feet within 45 minutes, according to state officials. In the early hours of Friday morning the floodwaters swept through Camp Mystic, sadly claiming the lives of young girls and camp counselors. 

As we know here, rivers can rise quickly and dramatically. Kerr County officials have stated that there are alarms on parts of the Guadalupe River but not all of it, which may have alerted those areas that were impacted. 

These intense single-day events are on the rise, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

The prevalence of extreme single-day precipitation events remained steady between 1910 and the 1980s but has risen substantially since then. 

Nationwide, nine of the top 10 years for extreme one-day precipitation events have occurred since 1995. The occurrence of abnormally high annual precipitation totals has also increased.

It has become clear in Texas that warning systems and emergency personnel response are important operations that must happen in a timely manner. 

In 2018, Sullivan County was recognized by the National Weather Service as a Storm Ready county by exceeding the requirements for hazardous warnings and community preparedness.

It was that year that we weathered two powerful storms – one in March and one in May – where over 24,000 customers were without power, some for over a week.

Climate scientists have been sounding the alarm for many years about the disastrous effects of climate change, and we hope that it is time to listen.