Kerr County and the Upper Guadalupe River Authority will begin installing the county's first river flood warning sirens on Tuesday as part of a new alert system. The authority is coordinating the project with county emergency management and local cities.

The initial phase targets flash flood alerts near camps along the North and South Forks of the Guadalupe River in West Kerr County. The first eight outdoor sirens are expected to be operational by this summer, according to Kerr Together. A second phase of the installation is planned for summer 2027.

The authority began installing outdoor warning sirens last week across parts of Kerr County. Residents may have heard siren testing during that period as crews prepared for installation. Testing of the sirens started Thursday and will continue through Friday. Residents may hear one or more 30-second siren tests throughout the day during the testing period.

The warning sirens are part of a larger Guadalupe River Flood Warning System being developed jointly by the authority and Kerr County. The project will include a network of river and rainfall gauges capable of monitoring flood conditions every five minutes. If water levels become dangerous, officials will be able to activate the sirens to warn people living, camping or visiting near the river.

The system is entering its final testing phase. Officials plan to launch an online system allowing the public to track river and rainfall conditions in real time. The next phase of the project will focus on educating the public about what to do when the sirens sound during an actual emergency.

Last year's Fourth of July floods in the region were deadly. The new siren network is designed to provide earlier warnings to people near the river in the event of dangerous water levels.