Below is a recent LCRA news release of interest to Highland Lakes residents.
LCRA OFFERS FREE
NOTIFICATION SERVICE
FOR FLOODGATE OPERATIONS
For Immediate Release: April 3, 2006
Media Contact: Bill McCann, 1-800-776-5272, Ext. 4032, or Krista Umscheid, Ext. 3365
AUSTIN - Do you live or operate a business downstream of one of the Highland Lakes - Buchanan, Inks, LBJ, Marble Falls, Travis, Austin - or on the Colorado River below Austin? If so, you may want to sign up for a new free public service offered by LCRA to alert you about floodgate operations.
LCRA is the manager of the six Highland Lakes and dams, operating them during floods to reduce the risk of property damage and loss of life downstream. Preventing loss of life and reducing flood damage on the lower Colorado River is a key responsibility given to LCRA by the state of Texas.
As a public service, LCRA has operated a public notification system since 1991 to alert subscribers to the beginning of floodgate operations. Now LCRA is switching to a new, improved system called the Floodgate Operations Notification Service (FONS).
You may sign up for the new free service if you reside, own property, or operate a business on the lakes or river downstream of Buchanan, Inks, Wirtz, Starcke, Mansfield or Tom Miller dams, which create the Highland Lakes. You must apply for the service even if you subscribe to the current system. An online application is available at the LCRA Web site, www.lcra.org.
Whenever possible, FONS will contact subscribers with an e-mail and phone calls before the first floodgate opens. A pre-recorded message will notify you that floodgate operations are expected to begin or have begun. It will make up to two more attempts to notify you if the telephone is busy or if there is no answer. The message will include a telephone number to call and a Web site for additional information. The notification will be made once and will not be repeated if additional floodgates are opened.
FONS is not a substitute for vigilant monitoring of local news media, NOAA All-Hazards Radio broadcasts and other information sources. It is your responsibility to remain aware of threatening weather conditions and to take timely action to protect yourself and your property.
For additional information about this service, please contact Ed Schaefer, LCRA Emergency Management Coordinator, at (512) 473-4072 or 1-800-776-5272, Ext. 4072, or by e-mail, ed.schaefer@lcra.org.