With the death toll still rising, the Austin area's recent flooding is one of its deadliest ever

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Just when Austin was starting to think that drought might continue into the summer, the first raindrops fell — and kept falling.

Throughout Austin’s history, the city has fallen victim to many floods, caused by dam failure, excessive rain and tropical storm remnants.

Not only do these floods damage infrastructure — especially riverside homes and businesses — and cost local governments millions to recover, there are few major flooding events that don’t take lives. The recent disaster is no exception, and is already one of the deadliest on record.

What is the deadliest flood in the Austin area’s history?

The first recorded major floods in Austin were in 1843 and 1869, the latter being far worse. While incomplete records make it impossible to know how many lives were lost, historical accounts report constant rain for 64 hours, an estimated $3 million in damages ($70 million today) and all major bridges on the lower Colorado River destroyed.

In April of 1900, Austin’s newly constructed dam failed, sending a 50-foot wall of water pouring through downtown. This flooding event left at least 50 dead, making it the second deadliest in the Austin area’s history.

Austin History Center

The Austin Dam on the Colorado River broke during the 1900 flood.

In April of 1915, hard rain caused a flash flood sending debris gushing through Shoal Creek and Waller Creek, killing around 35 people — the third deadliest event on record.

A vintage photograph shows people gathering on a stone bridge to looking down on Waller Creek with destroyed buildings on either side.

Austin History Center

People gather on the stone bridge to survey the aftermath of the April 1915 flood at Waller Creek in Austin.

Flooding continued to be a regularity for Central Texas in the 1900s, with at least three notable flooding events occurring just in the 1930s and three more again in the 1980s. Events like the 1981 Memorial Day flood, catastrophic for many buildings and homes, killed 13 people.

A black-and-white photograph shows three people wading through flood waters carrying a television.

Austin History Center

In 1981, residents along Williamson Creek were forced from their homes as heavy rains flooded the creek banks.

The recent July 4 weekend flood left at least 18 dead in Travis and neighboring counties, as of July 17. It is the fourth deadliest in the Austin area’s history — and the deadliest since the construction of the Highland Lakes reservoirs in the 1930s.

Deadliest Austin-area floods 1. September 1921 floods — nearly 100 dead locally 2. April 1900 dam failure — at least 50 dead 3. April 1915 creek floods — around 35 dead 4. July 2025 floods — at least 18 dead locally Deadliest Texas floods 1. September 1900 Galveston hurricane — at least 6,000 dead 2. September 1921 San Antonio floods — at least 200 dead 3. December 1913 Central Texas floods — nearly 180 dead 4. July 2025 floods — at least 130 dead, around 100 people still missing
A list of the deadliest flooding in the Austin area and statewide, as of July 17.

The deadliest local flooding event in recorded history took place in 1921.

Remnants of the Tampa Bay hurricane settled over Thrall, a small city outside of Taylor in Williamson County, starting a 24-hour downpour. Rivers overflowed throughout Central Texas from the constant rain. The flood claimed nearly 100 lives in Austin’s neighboring counties alone. The disaster also stands as the second deadliest flooding event in state history.

What is the deadliest flood in Texas history?

While many may think of the more infamous hurricanes of the past century, such as Harvey in 2017 or Beulah in 1967, those storms left far more homeless than dead. Harvey did cause the most damage in state history, though, costing over $125 billion.

The deadliest flood in Texas — and in modern American history for that matter — was the Great Galveston Hurricane in 1900. The hurricane claimed at least 6,000 lives and likely thousands more. It also destroyed over 2,500 homes, damaging thousands more.

A vintage photograph shows men standing on a broken road with houses in shambles in the background.

Taylor Public Library

Following the 1921 flood, men stand where Washburn Street had been washed away by floodwaters in Taylor.

The 1921 San Antonio flooding that saw over 200 lives lost statewide is the second deadliest since 1900. The third deadliest is the 1913 Central Texas floods, claiming nearly 180 lives.

The recent July 4 weekend flooding event — affecting multiple areas of Texas, in particular the Kerrville area — is currently the fourth deadliest in state history. With over 130 already found dead and around 100 still missing, it may soon be Texas’ second deadliest ever.

How much water was in this flood?

Parts of the Highland Lakes region received as much as 22 inches of rainfall over the July 4 weekend, according to the Lower Colorado River Authority. To put that in perspective, Austin averages 35.5 inches of rainfall per year.

Lake Travis took the brunt of the recent flood and rain, rising more than 30 feet to a little over 673 feet, LCRA data shows. The far less deadly “Christmas Flood” of 1991 raised Lake Travis to its highest point ever at just over 710 feet, according to the Austin Water Center for Environmental Research.

So, why was this month’s flooding event so deadly? Experts suggest the nature of flash floods — the Guadalupe River rising to 26 feet within 45 minutes — contributed to the dangerous flows that rushed through the Texas Hill Country.

In a striking parallel to the recent tragedy at Camp Mystic, the Guadalupe also flooded in 1987, killing 10 teenagers who were trying to flee their summer camp as floodwaters rose.

For a region often called “Flash Flood Alley,” the danger posed by unexpected downpours in Central Texas will only continue.