Most Highland Lakes reopen after severe flooding, but officials urge caution

AUSTIN, Texas - Most of the waterways along the Highland Lakes chain are now open, but officials with the LCRA are advising caution if you are hitting the water this weekend.

Some officials even suggest staying out of the water. 

Lake Marble Falls was closed earlier this week and remains closed. Updates are posted on the city website.

Debris in Lake Travis

Local perspective:

Lake Travis on Friday morning appeared to offer clear sailing, but looks can be deceiving. 

Debris and damage were found in an area known as the Sandy Creek Arm. It was a surprise for Robert Weiss with Lake Travis Scuba. On July 3, this cove was mostly dry land.

"We've seen it flood, and we've seen everything flow out, but to see this in the amount of damage up here is significantly worse than I've ever seen," said Weiss.

There are several broken and battered boat docks floating in the lake. A repair crew with Lone Star Docks has been working 13-hour days making repairs and working in a lot of debris.

"It's crazy to look at, but you don't want to get wrapped up in stuff, and you don't want the debris to mess up your boats. They have probably already been messed up because of the damage so far," said team leader Kyote Brennand. 

Employees with Flagship Towing have also been busy. They've recovered watercraft that were either swamped or beached, and reeled in several docks that broke away. 

Dig deeper:

There have also been reports of looting. A metal gangway and kayaks were among the items taken from a job site Rodrigo Rivera was working at.

"People taking advantage of this is not a great thing, you know. They should be helping people out, getting their stuff back, you know, not taking it home," said Rivera. 

Law enforcement units were on Lake Travis on Friday. Two crews with the Austin Police Department were deploying sonar and a submersible drone. They are searching for bodies that may have been swept into the lake. 

The search grid included a dock owned by lakeside resident Vance Kollatschny. He spoke to FOX 7 as a modified barge went past, cutting a path into the debris-filled cove for the search team.

"It looks like a tornado came through or something I don't know, but we're the first inlet past Jonestown, so that's where all the debris came from," said Kollatschny.

LCRA response

LCRA Executive Vice President of Water John Hofman sent a statement about the lakes:

"Conditions on Lake Travis are significantly different than they were a week so, as the lake has risen more than 23 feet since early on July 4. Our crews have replaced most of the buoy markers that were damaged or destroyed by the recent floods, but anyone boating on the lakes still needs to use extra caution. We are advising people to stay off the lakes at night and to use caution when swimming in the lakes, as bacteria levels typically remain high for a couple of weeks after a flood event."

Residents urged to take precautions 

Dock diver Andres Lopez had to be in the water. He said he is taking precautions.

"I got little drops I’ve been putting in my ears, keeping the bacteria out and stuff like that, keeping clean, but it's definitely dirty," said Lopez. 

Wait a few weeks, Lopez suggested for those thinking about a trip to a local lake. 

Despite the risk, a couple of party barges were tied up at Starnes Island on Friday afternoon, and some people were diving in. Robert Weiss, however, decided to cancel his upcoming charter.

"After seeing what's out here and talking to the people they're working out here, stay off the lake there's no reason to be out here," said Weiss. 

Lake TravisNatural Disasters