As the floodwaters rushed into Kerrville, Texas, under the cover of darkness on Friday morning, officers jumped into action to evacuate over 100 homes and rescue more than 200 people in one hour, the police department said.

KERRVILLE, Texas (Reuters) -Officials in flood-stricken central Texas on Wednesday again deflected mounting questions about whether they could have done more to warn people ahead of devastating flash flooding that killed at least 119 people on July 4.

In the early hours of Independence Day, rain pelted sleeping communities in central Texas. No one knew yet how devastating the storm would become.

Gov. Greg Abbott has promised to add flood response to the agenda for the July 21 special session, with an expected focus on alert systems and local recovery.