Graveyard Point residents brace for more flooding

May 16--Last Thursday afternoon, Dennis Hall and his stepson, Kyle Rapovich, were busy finishing the flooring on the Graveyard Point house that Hall shares with his wife, Dawn Hall. However, the men and their helpers were not immune to the rising lake waters just across the street, on Hurst Creek Circle.

"We're already scared," Rapovich said, knowing more rain was on its way. "(The water)'s already up this high. It's kind of a little intimidating."

Dennis Hall said the lake water was around 685 feet above mean sea level that afternoon, and, when it advances to 690 feet, the water covers the street, reaching his front door at 702 feet. In October, the water level reached 704 feet above mean sea level in the area, bringing flood water high up into Graveyard Point homes.

Meteorologists predict another round of thunderstorms in the coming days that could bring 1-2 inches of rain, causing anxiety for residents who are still recovering from last fall's deluge.

Out of 1,000 homes reviewed in Travis County's unincorporated areas following the October floods, 481 properties were affected, said Travis County's flood plain administrator Stacey Scheffel. Out of those 481 homes, 138 had major damage that included more than 5 feet of water standing in a site-built home or a foot of water in a mobile home, with 96 homes having incurred minor damage and 247 structures, or outbuildings such as sheds, affected by the flood, she said.

Almost all of the homes in Graveyard Point, the lowest point on Lake Travis, are in a 100-year floodplain that is at 722 feet above mean sea level, meaning the property is predicted to flood every 100 years or has a 1% chance of flooding in any given year, Scheffel said.

The Halls had 2 feet of water in their house during that flood and now live in a recreational vehicle behind their house while the home's interior is getting a complete renovation. Dennis Hall said he had hoped to move back into the home shortly after Memorial Day.

"This is my wife's house," Dennis Hall said, adding that the couple has lived in the home for the past eight years. "She grew up here, and her father gave it to her. It's sentimental. She doesn't want to get rid of it, but I think she's right at the line where, if it happens again, we're going to probably leave."

The Halls have been taking their time with the renovations since they don't have flood insurance and all of the repair costs are being paid for out-of -pocket, he said.

But Dennis Hall considers himself to be one of the "lucky ones."

"Pray for these other people, like Dewey Cooper, who lives down by the water," he said. "He's been underwater 10 times."

Cooper, Graveyard Point's unofficial mayor, said he has lived in his home on Graveyard Point Road since 1986. Cooper said he's not concerned about flooding yet.

"When the water gets up to a foot before my doorstep, I'm worried," he said. "In October, the water was 18 inches over my chimney."

Although Cooper and his next door neighbor Larry DuPuy disagree over who used HardieBacker cement board to construct their homes' walls first, the measure has saved both of them time and money. The tile underlayment, originally meant for bathrooms and other wet areas, is made of cement and sand. When it floods, these interior materials only require Cooper to remove the paneling, pressure wash the walls and then wait for them to dry before bleaching the walls a couple of times and putting it all back together with a coat of paint, Cooper said.

As of May 9, Cooper had only one last bedroom to paint to complete his home repairs, work that he said won't happen now until the lake levels go down. Despite the floods, he said he remains in his home for those warm summer days on the lake.

"Besides that, I can't afford to buy another house for what I can sell this one for," said Cooper, who is 83, "so, I'm kinda stuck."

He said his children, who live in the Austin area, move him out when it floods, including the kitchen cabinets and even, literally, the kitchen sink.

Cooper marks his years of sobriety--since 2013--by the local floods he's endured.

"It's probably going to flood," Cooper said. "Oh, by the way, this will be my third flood sober. But you have more fun when you're drunk."

Although DuPuy lives in Dripping Springs, he can often be found at his lake home next door to "the mayor." He said his father bought the property in 1957 and added a little fishing cabin to it over pier and beam. But the cute house with its oak wood floor floated down to a neighbor's property during the flood that year, and DuPuy's father was called to retrieve it.

After that, DuPuy's father poured a concrete slab, adding cement walls and a metal roof to the new structure to ride out future floods, he said. During those times, DuPuy said he can move out in about an hour, taking the cabinets and drawers with him. The damage usually tallies only about $500, he said.

"You just have to be aware of what's going to happen and know what to do with it," he said.

DuPuy, who owns a construction company, no longer has flood insurance premiums skyrocketed, he said. In October, the water was about a foot from the top of his roof, but don't ask him to sell the property.

"It's where I was raised, so I wouldn't sell it," DuPuy said, adding that he has three grandsons in Steiner Ranch who enjoy an afternoon on the lake with a couple of personal watercrafts.

He said he's noticed that some of his neighbors have put "For Sale" signs in their yards following the fall flood.

Graveyard Point resident Amber McKinney said she may not return to her Blue Cat Lane home if it floods in the coming weeks. She and her family, including her then-4-month-old son, evacuated their house in October, when the water "completely submerged" the structure, she said. They moved back into their home in March, after living in an apartment while the repairs to their home were being completed.

"This community is amazing," McKinney said. "There's so many kind people out here. We wanted (our son) to grow up on the water and feed deer every day. (But) it will be hard to come back after this one."

McKinney has flood insurance and rented a U-Haul to move their belongings out of the home in October.

"The good thing was the financial stress was relieved (by flood insurance)," McKinney said. "Unfortunately, it's still very stressful."

She said her husband has owned the property since 2007, and the couple endured the 2016 flood as well. McKinney partially blames the Lower Colorado River Authority for the destruction to her community and wants more notice about when the agency will open floodgates upstream.

"I just wish they would do the right thing or communicate more to our personal community since their decisions directly affect us and our families and our kids," McKinney said. "I'm ready for them to be more responsible."

As of May 13, the LCRA had fully opened one floodgate at Buchanan Dam, two floodgates at Tom Miller Dam and two floodgates at Mansfield Dam. Additionally, the agency partially opened one floodgate each at Wirtz and Starcke dams. At Inks Dam, which has no floodgates, water was about two feet over the spillway.

According to LCRA spokesperson Clara Tuma, the agency shared information about the planned partial opening of a floodgate at Starcke Dam above Lake Travis as soon as the decision to open the gate was made on Saturday, using its Flood Operations Notification Service at 1:15 p.m. to alert residents that a floodgate would be opened at 7 p.m., she said. LCRA also shared information about the planned floodgate opening throughout the afternoon on social media, its website and on local media,Tuma said.

Lake Travis is the only one of the Highland Lakes which can capture and temporarily store floodwaters in its 33-foot flood pool, from elevation 681 feet above mean sea level to 714 feet, she said. Mansfield Dam is used to safely release waters downstream, she said.

"That is what is happening now," Tuma said. "Anyone who chooses to build or have a home in the Lake Travis flood pool should be aware that water may rise into the flood pool during flood events."

Tuma encouraged anyone who may be affected by floodgate operations to sign up for the FONS notifications, which will call, text or email subscribers when initial floodgate operations begin at dams along the Highland Lakes. For more information on this service, go to www.lcra.org/fons.

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