Much-needed storms have been showering the Austin area recently, leading authorities to open the floodgates at Wirtz Dam and Starcke Dam to move storm runoff downstream into Lake Travis for the first time in nearly a year, Austin American-Statesman reported.
Although much of the state is still experiencing drought conditions, the rains over Labor Day weekend, which continued into the following week, gave a welcome reprieve. Parts of the state are now no longer in a drought, and the drought conditions have lessened in other parts, per KVUE.
👀 Look at all that water! Johnson Fork near #Junction is raging. Johnson Fork eventually feeds into the #Llano River, which explains why moderate flooding is forecast on the Llano River.
— Chikage Windler WX (@ChikageWeather) July 23, 2024
Video: @CatawbaKing pic.twitter.com/dG5zwuflCk
Seeing large amounts of water flowing through the rivers was a welcome sight for Texas residents.
"Look at all that water!" wrote CBS meteorologist Chikage Windler (@ChikageWeather) on her X account. "Johnson Fork near #Junction is raging. Johnson Fork eventually feeds into the #Llano River, which explains why moderate flooding is forecast on the Llano River."
Some areas of Llano County got so much rain that they had to close schools due to flooding, KVUE reported.
Due to changes to our climate that have resulted from the overheating of the planet caused by air pollution from dirty energy sources, droughts have become increasingly prevalent and long-lasting around the world, as the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions explains.
Other types of extreme weather have also become more frequent and more intense due to these changes to our climate. For Texas (and other places, such as California), that has meant years of drought punctuated by massive storms that cause flooding and widespread destruction. Although these storms have served an important function of refilling depleted reservoirs, they clearly come with their own problems that must be dealt with.
In the meantime, however, Texans can take solace in the fact that the worst of the current drought appears to be over.
"Amazingly needed, floods end droughts," wrote one X user, commenting on the video of water flowing into the Llano River.
"Good for Lake Travis!" wrote another.
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