(Seguin) — Guadalupe County officials are asking anyone whose home or property sustained damage during last week’s heavy rainfall to report it — even if the damage appears minor.
Emergency Management Coordinator and Fire Marshal Patrick Pinder says county officials have received reports of flooding in some low-lying areas, particularly south of Interstate 10 near New Berlin along Cibolo Creek.
He says Guadalupe County Judge Kyle Kutscher even signed a voluntary evacuation order for residents along portions of Cibolo Creek as a precaution.
“Those residents down there were asked to leave on their own. Guadalupe County did not do a mandatory evacuation. Judge Kutscher did sign a voluntary evacuation for areas along the Cibolo Creek. We just wanted to make sure residents were aware,” said Pinder.
Now, county officials are focused on collecting damage information through the Texas Division of Emergency Management’s iSTAT Damage Survey.
Pinder says the reports help determine whether Guadalupe County qualifies for state or federal disaster assistance.
“We are encouraging those folks to report to the iSTAT, which is the state’s damage assessment, just to make sure that we’re collecting that information. If we meet a threshold, we can definitely try to get those folks some assistance,” said Pinder.
He says residents shouldn’t assume their damage is too minor to report.
“We just want to make sure that folks are reporting. If it’s something little that you think needs to be reported—if you’re in that area and you’ve got a fence that goes down,” said Pinder.
Pinder says the survey is especially important for residents who may not have adequate insurance coverage.
“Understand that this is a collective of uninsured damages. If you have insurance, it’ll ask you that, but we want to make sure those folks that are uninsured or underinsured have that resource available if and when it becomes available,” said Pinder.
Residents can complete the iSTAT damage survey online through the Texas Division of Emergency Management. Officials stress that reporting damage does not guarantee financial assistance, but it is a critical first step in determining whether disaster aid may become available.
Links for the iSTAT survey can be found on the Guadalupe County Emergency Management Office or city of Seguin Facebook pages.