Rain may ease Sunday but will likely resume Monday

Oct. 20--The steady rains that led to widespread flood damage in Central Texas earlier this week could loosen their grip on the region come Sunday, before starting up again next week, the National Weather Service said Friday.

Saturday's forecast for Austin includes a 50 percent chance of showers, but the rain coverage and intensity could be weaker than in previous storms, which means the area might avoid widespread flooding, the weather service said.

This week saw several inches of rain pour onto Hill Country watersheds and fill the Llano River. Rushing floodwaters wiped out the RM 2900 bridge in Kingsland and prompted evacuations along the swollen Llano and Colorado rivers.

The Llano County Office of Emergency Management urged residents to report damages to their insurance agencies, and Marble Falls has set up collection points for supplies at the First United Methodist Church, 1101 Bluebonnet Drive, Granite Shoals First Baptist Church, 505 S. Phillips Ranch Road, and the Church at Horseshoe Bay, 600 Hi Ridge Road, for those affected by flooding.

Four floodgates had to be opened on Mansfield Dam on Tuesday after floodwaters filled Lake Travis beyond its normal capacity. The water from Lake Travis now emptying into Lake Austin and later Lady Bird Lake could affect adjacent trails, parks and roadways, authorities said.

The Travis County sheriff's office said it would be watching out for flooded areas ahead of the Formula One races at Circuit of the Americas this weekend.

"Patrons should monitor COTA social media sites for up-to-the-minute route recommendations," sheriff's office spokeswoman Kristen Dark said in a statement. "Deputies will be directing traffic and monitoring closed roadways."

Those heading out to the final F1 race on Sunday should plan for a 20 percent chance of rain, weather service meteorologist Yvette Benavides said. Temperatures could reach the upper 60s during the day and slip into the lower 50s at night, she said.

"(Saturday) morning will be sort of the worst of the weekend," Benavides said, adding that the rain is expected to fall intermittently. "It looks like we might get a little bit of a break on Sunday."

Although the weather service's computer models show Central Texas trending wetter Monday with an 80 percent chance of rain, the forecast for the rest of next week depends largely on whether tropical moisture in the eastern Pacific Ocean will make its way into Texas, forecasters said.

At press time Friday, the Lower Colorado River Authority, which manages Mansfield and the other dams that form the Highland Lakes, said in a statement that it "does not anticipate having to open additional floodgates on Mansfield Dam over the weekend."

At 6 p.m. Friday, Lake Travis' elevation was 704.29 feet above mean sea level and was 146 percent full, according to the LCRA. That number could rise to 706 feet above mean sea level on Saturday, LCRA officials said.

"Those projections could change if additional rain falls in the lower Colorado River basin," an LCRA, which manages the Highland Lakes, statement read, adding it would alert the public and local authorities if more floodgates need to be opened. "Anyone downstream of Mansfield Dam should remain prepared for the potential that additional floodgates may be needed."

Lake Buchanan, Inks Lake and lakes LBJ, Marble Falls, Travis and Austin are closed until further notice. Pace Bend Park, Hippie Hollow Park, Bob Wentz Park and Cypress Creek Park were closed until further notice because of flooding Friday, Travis County officials said.

Gov. Greg Abbott on Friday added 36 more counties to a state disaster declaration issued for 18 counties -- including Travis, Williamson and Bastrop counties -- earlier in the week. He said residents should expect heavy rain and possible flooding in South Texas over the weekend before storms move up through the state.

"Very importantly for many people across the entire state of Texas, understand this, and that is, you need to expect flooding to continue for perhaps another week," Abbott said.

River flooding should be anticipated, especially in the Guadalupe, Llano, Colorado, Nueces and Brazos rivers and on some points on the Trinity River, he said.

"We must always emphasize that you have the ability to save your own life," Abbott said, adding that residents should remain alert and aware and drivers should always turn around, don't drown.

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