Focus is on targeted ‘areas of interest’ rather than a full dredge
INGRAM, Texas – More than three months after deadly floods swept through the Hill Country on the Fourth of July, a new attempt at recovery is underway at Ingram Lake.
Heavy machinery, including a couple of cranes, is in position as search and recovery crews prepare to dig into specific areas of the lakebed.
Two barges will be deployed: one to carry equipment and the other to recover any items found during the operation.
“We’re certain that they’re going to find something, and we sure hope they find Cile and Jeff,” Ingram resident David Carr said.
Neighbors have expressed a mix of hope and lingering concerns.
“There’s a lot of debris down there, and we need to be safe again,” said Julia Madrid, who lives nearby.
Ingram Code Enforcement Officer Stuart Gross said the plan is not to dredge the entire lake, but to focus on specific “areas of interest” identified by search teams.
“They’re not dredging the lake,” Gross said. “They have specific areas of interest, and that’s where they’re going to go.”
While many residents have supported continued recovery efforts, some are still uneasy about the lake’s water quality.
“I spoke to a lady with Upper Guadalupe River Authority, and she said the water tests good,” Gross said, referring to the Upper Guadalupe River Authority. “I’m not going to get in it for a while because we still consider it a graveyard until they find those two people.”
Though officials say the water is safe, Carr and other residents remain skeptical.
“They start stirring up the rubble, they’re going to stir up whatever is there,” he said. “Of course, we’re not going to go swimming right now; I don’t know if I’ll ever put my feet in the water anymore.”
For now, draining the lake is not part of the plan, according to local officials. The search operation is expected to begin early next week and could take anywhere from two weeks to a month.
Watch below: Why crews want to search the lake instead of draining it
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