Two rescued from Spicewood floodwaters

by Alexandria Randolph

A “hairy” swift water rescue in Spicewood on Saturday night, May 23, successfully snagged two Spicewood residents from the grasp of swift moving floodwaters. 

At 9:06 p.m., Spicewood Volunteer Firefighters were called out into the gale to assist a woman whose vehicle had stalled in the low water crossing on CR 404 near Krause Springs. 

At 9:21 p.m., dispatch communications with the firefighters reported they had made contact with the residents

Volunteer Firefighter Jamie Ludwig said volunteers found a woman and her relative who had clung to a cypress tree as swift water rose around them. 

“They managed to position themselves behind the tree. They had a perfect pocket where the water was moving around them,” she said. 

Ludwig said at the time the driver, described as a woman in her late 30s, attempted to cross the creek in her vehicle, the water was only up to her car door, but it rose after her vehicle stalled. She then called her family member, a man in his late 20s, for help. Both were caught in floodwaters.

“She was trying to get back to the Krause Springs area where her family was, and the water must have not looked so high at first,” Ludwig said. “It was deeper than she thought… People around here aren’t used to seeing that much water. We haven’t had a rain like that in years.” 

For the full story, see Tuesday's Highlander.