Texas, flood
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Camp, Texas
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For years, employees say, they've had to do more with less. But the ability to fill in the gaps became strained to the breaking point when the Trump administration began pushing new staffing cuts.
The flood warning is in effect until Tuesday, July 15, at 7 a.m. for the Frio River. NWS said that major flooding is forecast for the Frio River below Dry Frio, with the National Water Prediction Service predicting the river will hit 18.6 feet at around 5 p.m. The major flood stage for the Frio River is 17 feet.
Some governors and mayors are concerned over how current or potential cuts to agencies will impact how the government can respond in the future to major weather events.
Experts said the NWS did a good job warning about the flooding, but questions remain about whether the cuts played a role.
Parts of Central Texas are under yet another flood watch this weekend. The impacted areas are the same as those hit by the July 4 deadly floods.
Q: Is it true that if President Donald Trump hadn’t defunded the National Weather Service, the death toll in the Texas flooding would have been far lower or nonexistent? A: The Trump administration did not defund the NWS but did reduce the staff by 600 people.
Deadly flood in Texas sparks a debate over whether recent cuts and staffing shortages led to a greater loss of life.
Key positions at National Weather Service offices across Texas are vacant, sowing doubt over the state’s ability to respond to natural disasters as rescuers comb through the flood-ravaged Hill Country.
The Chicago area has felt less of an impact from the Trump administration’s National Weather Service cuts than offices in the Quad Cities and downstate Lincoln.