Kerr County, Texas, lacked a “last mile” warning mechanism that could have saved residents before the deadly floods devastated the area, including a children’s summer camp, killing more than 80 people.

As a deadly "flood wave" swept through Kerr County, Texas, on the Fourth of July, miles and miles of damage were left behind.

Since 2016, the topic of a "flood warning system" for Kerr County has come up at 20 different county commissioners' meetings, according to minutes. The idea for a system was first introduced by Kerr County Commissioner Thomas Moser and Emergency Management Coordinator Dub Thomas in March 2016.

When the precipitation intensified in the early morning hours Friday, many people failed to receive or respond to flood warnings at riverside campsites known to be in the floodplain.

July Fourth brought "life-threatening flash flooding" to the Kerrville area. More than 20 children remain unaccounted for from nearby Camp Mystic.

A "Basic Plan" for emergency response for three Texas counties, including Kerr County, labeled flash flooding as "highly likely" to occur, with a "major" impact on public health and safety, according to an ABC News review of a page on the Kerrville city website.

Federal forecasters issued their first flood warning at 1:14 a.m. on July 4. Local officials haven’t shed light on when they saw the warnings.