Drones Employed To Check Drainage Along Mill Creek; 13 Areas Of Concern Found [VIDEO]

The Mill Creek is one of the larger water drainage areas of Austin County.  It is for that reason that it must be constantly monitored to ensure that water continues to drain properly.  The Austin County Drainage District number one, what many refer to as the Mill Creek Drainage District, is tasked with keeping the Mill Creek flowing properly.  The drainage district was founded in 1935 and used to be a taxing entity but, is no longer.  Frank Monk, Gordon Gable, and Andrew Sowa are the current commissioners on the board.  The Mill Creek itself starts in Washington County near Burton and comes right through the middle of Austin County.  Many people fail to realize just how much water passes down the Mill Creek and how vitally important it is that the channel remain open. 

One of the biggest problems with keeping the channel open is log jams.  The drought that happened several years ago took a devastating toll on the trees in the area and those along the Mill Creek were no exception.  The death of those trees are beginning to be felt as they fall into the Mill Creek and cause obstructions to its flow.  One of the biggest questions when dealing with the creek and keeping it flowing is, what is the best way to monitor it?  Should it be canoed?  Walked?  These are the questions that the district must answer.  This year they hired John Deans, owner of Central Texas Drones, to fly over the creek and bring back video footage that was then analyzed and a report submitted.  What they found were several areas of concern that will need to be addressed in the near future.  Mr. Deans was on hand at the Student Government day at the Austin County Courthouse to show footage of the drone’s flight.  They found 13 areas of concern along the creek ranging from just a single tree being down and causing minor obstruction all the way to almost total blockage.  The question now is how should the blockage be dealt with?  The video below shows Mr. Dean’s complete fifteen minute presentation.