08 Oct Local Wardens Helped Save Lives in Hill Country Flooding

Zapata and Starr County Texas Parks and Wildlife Department game wardens played a critical role in recent search and rescue operations following severe flooding across Uvalde County and the surrounding Hill Country region.

Supervised by Captain Arnold Pinales, game wardens Hannah Navarro of Starr County, Matt Johnson of Zapata County, and Eric Jones of Zapata County deployed to the flood zone ahead of the storm. Applying lessons learned from sudden flooding in Kerrville a year earlier, response teams staged personnel and equipment in advance, warning residents along the Nueces and Frio Rivers before high waters hit.

During the July 2026 disaster, Uvalde County experienced near-record river surges that cut off access roads to the city for roughly 12 hours and washed out a major bridge on Highway 481. Operating alongside local, state, and federal agencies, wardens utilized high-water vehicles, boats, helicopters with hoist systems, and specialized surveillance drones to navigate impassable roads and monitor rising river levels in Cotulla and LaSalle County.

In total, game wardens conducted 153 rescues and 92 preemptive evacuations across Uvalde and neighboring counties, safely extricating stranded residents and several pets from rising waters. Three flood-related fatalities were confirmed across Kerr, Uvalde, and Val Verde Counties.

Following their swift disaster response in recent years, the Texas Game Wardens have been designated as the state’s Quick Reaction Force during natural disasters. Personnel in Zapata and Starr Counties maintain specialized swift-water rescue training and remain on standby for emergency deployments statewide.