Unfinished Smithville detention pond helped keep floodwaters down

BASTROP COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — A 85-year-old named James Welch lives in Smithville on Seventh Street where more than 20 homes have been damaged because of flooding this weekend. His home is surrounded by water you have to wade to get through.
Welch has lived in the area for 22 years and said that during the past five years it has flooded five times there.
Despite his experience with flooding, Welch didn’t expect the waters to make it as far into his house as they did — covering