Texas has weathered more than its fair share of nature’s fury, enduring a century of hurricanes, floods, explosions and tornadoes that have left deep scars on communities across the state, according to the National Environmental Satellite Data and Information Service.

Kerr County first tried to secure $1 million for a flood warning system in 2017, but could not. Could such a system have prevented loss of life on July 4?

In the last nine years, federal funding for a system has been denied to the county as it contends with a tax base hostile to government overspending.