AUSTIN (KXAN) – Emails and text messages sent by the mayor of Kerrville the day before deadly July 4 flooding show few, if any, documented concerns among city leaders about potential severe weather.

Less than an hour after the National Weather Service issued a flood watch on July 3 for parts of the western Hill Country, including Kerrville, Mayor Joe Herring was tending to routine concerns -- like which type of trees they should plant.

In a 1 p.m. email, Herring communicated with city officials about a planned golf course development in town. About two hours later, he sent off a nearly 500-word message about shade trees in town.

That morning, at 9:49 a.m. – 17 minutes after the Texas Division of Emergency Management emailed Herring briefing slides and a second reminder KXAN obtained abo

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