Experts said the NWS did a good job warning about the flooding, but questions remain about whether the cuts played a role.

"A lot of the weather forecast offices now are not operating at full complement of staff," said the former lead of NOAA.

As the deadly floodwaters in parts of central Texas recede, there are growing questions about how the catastrophic rainfall seemingly caught the area by surprise. Some local officials say the National Weather Service underestimated the extreme rain but the agency says an initial flood watch was issued Thursday afternoon.

The National Weather Service extended a flood watch July 7 through 7 p.m. local time for much of central Texas.

Searchers used helicopters, boats and drones to search for victims in flash floods that tore across Texas’s Hill Country at the start of the Fourth of July weekend

Search efforts continue for a fourth day with more than 80 people confirmed dead following flash floods in central Texas.