The extraordinary weather system that stalled over Marble Falls, Texas, began at about 10:30 p.m. Tuesday. By sunrise Wednesday, more than 19 inches of rain had fallen.

The storm wreaked havoc in the community, flooding homes, sweeping cars away, destroying property and endangering the lives of residents and tourists alike. Many residents reported a night of terror as floodwaters filled their homes. Public safety officials performed daring swiftwater rescues and evacuations. Thursday night about 100 families remained trapped in two subdivisions and the city was still struggling to get running water back into service, according to news reports.

The heavy rains also produced rivers of runoff that poured into the Highland Lakes. Lake levels quickly began rising, posing further risks to people and property in low-lying areas.

Marble Falls is a friendly, bustling lakeside community in the Hill Country northwest of Austin. It is home to the famous Bluebonnet Café and near the popular Longhorn Cavern and Inks Lake state parks. Lake Marble Falls, which winds through the center of town, is in the chain of six Highland Lakes managed by LCRA.

One of LCRA’s most important jobs is operating the Highland Lakes system of dams during a flood to protect people and property to the extent possible. LCRA began closely watching the storm Tuesday evening and began emergency flood operations shortly after midnight.

As the rains continued, LCRA began opening and closing floodgates as needed to move the water into Lake Travis, the flood storage reservoir, and on through the river toward the Gulf of Mexico.

The water will be safely stored and released at a controlled rate downstream to protect Austin and other downstream communities. LCRA likely will continue floodgate operations for several more weeks before the lakes return to their normal levels.

The floodwaters produce dangerous fast-moving currents and carry large debris as they move through the lakes. Because of the danger, LCRA has closed most of the Highland Lakes to water recreation. The City of Austin has closed Lake Austin, Town Lake and the Colorado River immediately below Austin.

There are limits to how much water can be passed through the lakes and river at once. LCRA measures floodwater in acre-feet (an acre-foot equals one foot of water on one acre of land). Using historical flood data, LCRA predicts an estimated 600,000 acre-feet of floodwaters will have gone into Lake Travis by July 1. That’s enough water to cover Rhode Island with a foot of water.

Meanwhile, Central Texas weather forecasts show scattered rains may continue through the weekend and a wet weather pattern could continue into next week, according to LCRA meteorologist Bob Rose.

Video courtesy of the The Weather Channel®

19 inches - the amount of rain that fell in Marble Falls on June 27.