Leander Mayor Christine DeLisle said Travis County officials turned away her city's assistance during the Sandy Creek flood response, leaving families stranded.
Leander Mayor Christine DeLisle said Travis County officials turned away her city's assistance during the Sandy Creek flood response, leaving families stranded. In a statement released Friday, DeLisle said she only recently learned that Travis County began denying Leander access and asking their teams to stand down after initial water rescues were completed last Saturday.
"I never imagined Travis County would turn away our help. But that is what happened," DeLisle said. "Travis County is the jurisdiction in charge, and they chose to refuse not only our, but other jurisdictions' assistance."DeLisle said Leander Fire responded at 2 a.m. Saturday to assist with water rescues at Sandy Creek in Travis County, performing multiple rescues that day. The city also reportedly opened its Travisso fire station as a staging area for Travis County crews and hosted state rescue teams at headquarters. But DeLisle said she believed her city was continuing to assist Travis County throughout the week, following standard disaster response protocol. "If I had known, I would have moved mountains to change that response by calling county officials directly or by publicly demanding action," she said.DeLisle also criticized Travis County's hazard mitigation planning, saying Sandy Creek was marked as a flood risk but never specifically identified for mitigation efforts. "There was no plan to reduce the danger there," she said. "I don't know how such an area could be overlooked, but it is unacceptable.""I do not understand why Leander has been denied access to so much of this tragedy," DeLisle said. "Sandy Creek is part of our community, and we would have gladly taken command."
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