KERRVILLE, Texas —

A rural Texas county needed but lacked an updated warning system, local officials testified Thursday, when flash flooding swept away homes and vehicles and left families begging for rescue on the roofs of their homes earlier this month.

Texas lawmakers searched for answers during a hearing on the deadly July 4 floods that overwhelmed Kerr County in a matter of hours. The hearing was the first time a panel of lawmakers visited the hard-hit Texas Hill Country since the floods. At least 136 people were killed, including 27 youths and counselors at an all-girls camp.

Among local officials who testified was the county’s emergency management chief, who explained his absence in the initial hours as the disaster unfolded.

Others who testified Thursday before an audience of h

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