By: Sticker Intern Ryan Rerich
Local weather observer Elroy Dieringer measured 1.8 inches of rain from Monday’s thunderstorm but it fell in a short amount of time and produced a potentially dangerous situation.
At approximately 1 p.m. on May 11, Schulenburg Chief of Police Troy Brenek was notified that the flow of water from runoff was collecting in the underpass on Kessler Avenue (Highway 77). The rain became too much for the drains to handle and the underpass, located just east of the Schulenburg Sticker office, filled with high amounts of water, making the travel down U.S. Highway 77 almost impossible.
Brenek said that Texas Department of Public Safety Trooper Keith McFadden and his brother, Schulenburg Police Department Officer Tobey McFadden, shut down travel for about one hour while they guarded both the north and south ends of Highway 77.
The Texas Department of Transportation examined the situation and found some debris that seemed to be blocking the flow of water through the drainage pipes. Orange construction netting was found in the pipes and removed from the drainage system by TxDOT personnel, said Brenek.
The heavy rain accumulated quickly, but the situation was handled properly and with much care. The underpass was cleared and safe for travel by approximately 2 p.m.
Monday’s rain added to the 17.72 inches Dieringer has already recorded this year and more was forecast to come this week. With the beneficial rainfall to start 2015, Fayette County has been outside of drought conditions since mid-March.
According to the Texas Water Development Board’s Texas Drought Report for May 11, the statewide drought of 2011-15 has ended. The report uses the Palmer Drought Severity Index. It showed that only 30 percent of the state was currently in moderate to exceptional drought. A year ago, that figure was 83 percent.
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