BOERNE — Even before record rainfall stopped falling across Boerne Monday, city crews were already responding throughout the community to protect residents, monitor conditions and address hazards created by rapidly rising water.
“Monday’s response highlighted the city’s ongoing commitment to public safety, service excellence, and coordinated emergency response efforts,” Mayor Frank Ritchie said. “They worked around the clock to keep the community safe during rapidly changing weather conditions.”
By the end of the day, portions of the city had received between 2.5 to more than 5 inches of rain, with much of the precipitation falling within a two-hour period. The intense rainfall led to flooded roads, significant rises in several creeks, and impacts at parks and public facilities across town.
According to the city’s engineers, rain gauge data from local monitoring stations within the city was analyzed for the June 15 storm and compared against NOAA Atlas 14 rainfall data, which is the standard the city of Boerne uses for stormwater planning.
Based on that comparison, the June 15 event was roughly equivalent to a 5-year storm, meaning there’s about a 1-in-5 chance (or 20 percent) of a storm that size occurring in any given year. However, areas neighboring the city did receive more rainfall for this event.
Throughout the event, employees from multiple city departments worked together to maintain public safety, respond to ever-changing impacts, and keep residents informed.
The Streets Department monitored roadway conditions throughout the storm and closed several floodprone areas, including Herff Road at River Road, the West Theissen low-water crossing, the Cibolo Creek Bridge, and other low-water crossings as water levels rose.
Crews continued monitoring conditions throughout the day and reopened roadways once they were deemed safe for travel. By mid-morning they were out at various low water crossings removing debris from the road. In the days since, they have deployed the street sweeper to pick up smaller dirt and rocks that washed onto roads across the city.
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