Texas Division of Emergency Management

And in major incidents, some responders carry multiple devices while shared channels can become overloaded.

Texas Division of Emergency Management said that there is no single statewide state-owned radio system today.

It's just non-existent.

And the issue goes even further than that because a radio can connect and still fail if responders don't know which channel to use, if backup power is missing, or if agencies have not trained together and know how to use the same equipment.

Governor Abbott says floods are expected and possibly flash floods in some regions across the state.

Chief Nim Kidd with the Texas Division of Emergency Management says while there is a drought right now, this rain at once, all of it, could cause problems.

Quote, for most of Texas, this will be so much needed rain, but there will be a lot more rain in some places.

For the Houston area, the National Weather Service says there's a 40% chance of rain coming up tomorrow, just 20% today.

So we are in the process of building our, our team now.

The state of Texas is also implemented at, Texas Department of Emergency Management or TDEM has started a statewide peer support program as well.

And they're getting ready to push out an app with a statewide phone number and things like that.

to be able to uh to support anybody right so if i don't want to talk to anybody in my county i can get on the app and i can request somebody and and it can be some stranger from the east you know from east texas that i don't know right or anybody else knows right so if i'm worried about confidentiality anonymity Here we are.

Any social media you want to leave with us anyway? Obviously, Hayes County Emergency Services District 9 is where you're working.

Any other social media or anything you want to leave for connection purposes?

I would absolutely check out the Texas Department of Emergency Management, and they will be posting some stuff as far as their peer support program.

And as they get that app and the phone number and everything, officially 100%

Oh, it was, it was a tough experience, Bridget.

I'd say it's the 10 most pressured days of my life and the pressure on them, and that was an enormous disaster, right? And I was working with the Texas Division of Emergency Management at that time on a research project.

Actually, it was HAND.

I mean, the, the thing that we did for HAND was funded by the Texas Division of Emergency Management.

And so I was there before the hurricane came ashore and I was listening to the weather briefings.

And we were running a prototype of the National Water Model then.

Maybe they don't even, not even consistent with one another.

And so I think there's a, there's a substantial contribution that we at UT Austin and other academic institutions can make.