Austin weather: Flash flooding causes high water in construction zone

Flash flooding causes high water on I-35 in Austin

Rain in Austin caused high waters in some high-traffic parts of the city. Lots of water was seen on the highway.

AUSTIN, Texas - Rain in Austin caused high waters in some high-traffic parts of the city. 

Lots of water was seen on the highway, though most low water crossings have remained open. 

The backstory:

Cars were seen at I-35 and Riverside driving into high waters near construction. The TxDOT handles drainage in that area.

"Yesterday’s heavy rain caused flash flooding across parts of Central Texas. On construction projects, TxDOT always follows best management practices for drainage. Our crews continue to monitor drainage systems to ensure they’re working properly. Our message to drivers and pedestrians is to avoid pooling water and flooded roadways. Turn Around Don’t Drown. The drain at Riverside Drive is working properly, and the water has receded," TxDOT said in a statement on April 30.

While there were high waters there, most other low water crossings in the city have not flooded. 

John Beachy oversees the Flood Early Warning System team with Austin Watershed Protection.

"So far, we've been lucky that the rainfall in our area has been relatively slow and steady, and we haven't seen too many problems with our roads and low water crossings overtopping. We are continuing to monitor that throughout the day and the remainder of the evening, and we'll be prepared to respond if conditions change," he said.

They use sensors, gauges, and predictive models to figure out which roads to close. The system can signal to crews when they need to put up barricades.

"It has a cable that runs to the creek itself and once that float switch reaches a certain level, it will trigger the lights to come on and that will be indicating, 'hey, you shouldn't be crossing this road,'" Beachy said.

Just because an area isn't a low water crossing doesn't mean it can't flood. Don't drive into high waters.

"We don't know what's under that water. It may look like it's shallow, but there should be some infrastructure issue below it that's causing it to be deeper than it is. We always advise people, if you can't see the road, to turn around and don't drown," Beachy said. 

What you can do:

If you see flooding in an unusual place, you can call 311, so crews can check the drainage system. 

To check for flood-related road closures, click here.