Austin sits in Flash Flood Alley along the Balcones Escarpment — one of the most flash-flood-prone regions in North America. October 2013 Onion Creek. May 2015 Wimberley. The May 2018 storms. Our IICRC-certified crews have responded to every major Austin-area flood event.
Here's what to do — and what not to do — in the next 5 minutes. The window between the loss starting and significant structural damage is short. Every hour matters.
Austin's Hill Country topography, Balcones Escarpment geology, and Edwards Aquifer recharge zone create a flash-flood pattern unique among major US metros. Multiple inches of rain in 1-3 hours regularly produce devastating floods on the urban creek systems.
The October 2013 Halloween flood produced 12+ inches of rain across the southern Austin watershed in 6 hours. Onion Creek through Dove Springs reached record stages and inundated thousands of homes — many that had never flooded before. Williamson Creek through south-central Austin showed similar patterns. These watersheds drain fast because Hill Country limestone substrate doesn't absorb water — runoff is immediate and concentrated.
The Blanco River rose 30+ feet in 3 hours through Wimberley, destroying homes and lives. Same storm system produced flash flooding throughout the Hill Country south of Austin. Reference event for how fast Hill Country waterways respond to heavy rainfall.
Downtown and central Austin's urban creek systems — Shoal Creek, Waller Creek, Bull Creek, Barton Creek — flood rapidly during intense rainfall events. Hyde Park, Allandale, Tarrytown, and Travis Heights neighborhoods see repeated creek-adjacent flooding.
Lake Travis sits in the LCRA Highland Lakes chain; flood-pool releases from upstream reservoirs (Buchanan, Inks, LBJ, Marble Falls) can rapidly raise Lake Travis. The 2018 fall floods raised the lake nearly 50 feet, inundating dock-level structures and lakefront equipment across western Travis County.
Our crew arrives with truck-mounted extraction units, structural drying equipment, full PPE rated for Category 3 flood water (Austin floods are Category 3 by definition — surface water from outside), moisture meters, and contents pack-out supplies. In the first 60 minutes: containment perimeter established, water extraction begins, photographic documentation of every affected room, contents triage (saved, tossed, climate-controlled storage), and identification of structural damage requiring engineering review.
Over the next 24-48 hours: continued extraction, demolition of all unsalvageable porous materials (flood water is Category 3 by definition — drywall below the water line, carpet, insulation, baseboards all come out), pressure-wash and decontaminate hard surfaces, EPA-registered antimicrobial treatment, structural drying with LGR dehumidifiers, NFIP claim documentation coordination, and assessment of contents for restoration versus replacement. Reconstruction is typically a separate 6-16 week scope.
We bill your insurance carrier directly so your out-of-pocket cost is typically just your deductible. We work with every major Texas carrier — and the high-net-worth specialty carriers for Westlake, Rollingwood, and Lakeway custom-home losses.
Same-hour dispatch to all of these Austin-area cities. Our crews are local to Central Texas — we know the neighborhoods, the watersheds, the Hill Country topography, and the carriers.
Standard homeowners insurance excludes flood damage. Coverage requires a separate NFIP (National Flood Insurance Program) policy or private flood insurance. If your home is in a FEMA-mapped Special Flood Hazard Area, your mortgage lender required NFIP. Austin's recent floods have proven that homes well outside the SFHA flood regularly — many South Austin, East Austin, and Westlake homeowners hit by Onion Creek 2013 or other events had no flood coverage because they were 'outside the flood zone' on paper.
Critical legal distinction. Water damage = water from inside the home (burst pipe, roof leak from storm, appliance failure) — covered by standard homeowners. Flood damage = surface water that entered the home from outside — excluded from homeowners, requires separate flood policy. A roof failure during a flash flood is water damage. Creek water rising into the living room is flood damage. The classification determines coverage.
Same-hour dispatch begins the moment it's safe to access properties — typically immediately after water recedes for localized events, 24-48 hours after catastrophic events like Onion Creek 2013. For major events, demand exceeds capacity for weeks; we prioritize active emergency dispatches over routine scheduling.
Don't. We need to document the high-water mark for the insurance scope, and removing materials prematurely complicates the claim. If you must do something while waiting, open windows for ventilation and remove standing water with a Shop-Vac if you have power. Leave demolition for the professional crew with proper PPE and documentation.
Single-story home with limited damage: 2-4 weeks mitigation + 6-12 weeks reconstruction. Multi-story home or extensive damage: 4-8 weeks mitigation + 4-9 months reconstruction. Onion Creek 2013-scale catastrophic damage: many homes took 12-24 months to fully restore.
Same-hour IICRC-certified crew dispatch. Direct insurance billing. Free on-site assessment. Every hour of delay means more damage.