The Deluge of Disinformation: How Texas Floods Became a Canvas for Conspiracy and Real-World Threats
The devastating flash floods that swept through central Texas, particularly along the Guadalupe River, left a trail of destruction and claimed over 100 lives. As communities grappled with the immediate aftermath of the tragedy, which saw a month's worth of rain fall in just hours, a different kind of storm was brewing online – a tempest of conspiracy theories and disinformation that quickly escalated from baseless claims to tangible threats and acts of vandalism.
Within hours of the floodwaters rising, social media platforms became fertile ground for claims that the disaster was not a natural event but a deliberate, targeted attack on American citizens. The culprits, according to these narratives, were wielding sophisticated 'weather weapons' or employing controversial techniques like cloud seeding to manipulate the weather and cause the catastrophic rainfall.
This surge of disinformation wasn't confined to the fringes of the internet. It was actively promoted and amplified by a diverse array of figures, including anti-government extremists and prominent political influencers, demonstrating the alarming reach and impact of conspiracy theories in the digital age. The consequences of these false narratives were swift and dangerous, manifesting in death threats against individuals wrongly blamed for the floods and even physical damage to critical weather infrastructure.
From Online Claims to Real-World Attacks: The Veterans on Patrol Incident
One of the most alarming manifestations of this disinformation wave was the rhetoric emanating from anti-government extremist groups. Michael Meyer, also known as Lewis Arthur, the founder of the group Veterans on Patrol, was quick to seize upon the tragedy, framing it within his group's anti-government ideology.
On Sunday afternoon, Meyer posted a chilling message on his Telegram channel, directly linking the floods to a deliberate act: “Due to the recent weather weapon deployed against Texas, which resulted in a high number of child murders, efforts to eliminate this military treason are being escalated.” This inflammatory language, baselessly accusing unnamed entities of using weather as a weapon resulting in mass casualties, served as a call to action for his followers.
Hours after Meyer's post, the online rhetoric spilled into the physical world. A man broke into an enclosure housing the NextGen Live Radar system operated by News 9 in Oklahoma City. This system, a type of Nexrad (Next Generation Weather Radar) used by entities like the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to detect vital weather phenomena such as precipitation, wind, tornadoes, and thunderstorms, is crucial for public safety and weather forecasting.
The vandal damaged the radar's power supply, briefly knocking it offline, and also destroyed CCTV cameras monitoring the site. Fortunately, footage shared by News 9 captured a clear image of the perpetrator's face before the cameras were disabled. While no arrests had been made at the time, the Oklahoma City Police Department confirmed they were aware of the Veterans on Patrol group.
Meyer, when questioned, did not confirm knowing the identity of the vandal but claimed the attack was part of what he termed 'Operation Lone Wolf'. He asserted that he was in online communication with over a dozen individuals willing to carry out similar attacks. His justification for these actions reveals the deep-seated distrust and hostility towards established institutions that fuel such extremist ideologies.
“Anyone that's going out to eliminate a Nexrad, if they haven't harmed life, and they're doing it according to the videos that we're providing, they are part of our group,” Meyer stated. He articulated a broader goal: “We're going to have to take out every single media's capabilities of lying to the American people. Mainstream media is the biggest threat right now.” This rhetoric positions weather radar systems, vital tools for public safety, as instruments of deception used by the media, justifying their destruction in the minds of his followers.
The attack on the News 9 radar system underscores the direct and dangerous link between online conspiracy mongering and real-world violence or vandalism. Disabling weather radar during severe weather events can have life-threatening consequences, hindering the ability of meteorologists to track storms and issue timely warnings.
The Cloud Seeding Scapegoat: Baseless Accusations and Death Threats
Beyond the 'weather weapon' narrative, the conspiracy theories heavily focused on cloud seeding as the alleged cause of the Texas floods. Cloud seeding is a real, albeit limited, weather modification technique that involves introducing substances like silver iodide or dry ice into clouds to encourage precipitation. It has been used for decades, primarily in arid regions, to potentially increase rainfall or snowfall.
However, the scale and intensity of the Texas floods far exceed anything scientifically possible through cloud seeding. Despite this, the practice became a central target for conspiracy theorists seeking an explanation for the disaster outside of natural meteorological processes.
Right-wing influencers and political figures quickly amplified these claims. Kandiss Taylor, a GOP candidate intending to run for a House seat in Georgia, posted to her millions of viewers, “Fake weather. Fake hurricanes. Fake flooding. Fake. Fake. Fake. That doesn’t even seem natural.” Similarly, Kylie Jane Kremer, executive director of Women for America First, questioned the naturalness of the event on X, in a post viewed millions of times.
Perhaps most notably, US representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Georgia Republican known for promoting various conspiracy theories, tweeted during the emergency response that she intended to introduce a bill to “end the dangerous and deadly practice of weather modification and geoengineering.” While her office did not explicitly tie this announcement to the Texas floods, the timing and context strongly suggested a connection, leveraging the tragedy to push a conspiracy-laden legislative agenda. Greene cited a similar bill signed into law in Florida by Governor Ron DeSantis, which makes weather modification a third-degree felony, punishable by significant fines.
The focus on cloud seeding quickly zeroed in on specific companies and individuals. Right-wing influencer Gabrielle Yoder specifically named Rainmaker, a startup involved in cloud seeding, on Instagram, blaming them for the floods. Disgraced former national security adviser Michael Flynn also targeted the company on X, dismissing any attempt to debunk the conspiracy as hostile.
Augustus Doricko, the founder of Rainmaker, found himself at the center of this storm of false accusations. Despite his company's limited operations and the scientific impossibility of cloud seeding causing such a massive flood, he began receiving a torrent of abuse and threats.
“I think that we've probably received in excess of 100 explicit death threats on either email or X, [with] probably about one order of magnitude more calls for my incarceration,” Doricko told WIRED. This illustrates the terrifying real-world impact that online disinformation can have on individuals and businesses.
Doricko clarified that Rainmaker had conducted a brief cloud seeding operation days before the storms, but it was near Runge, Texas, approximately 120 miles away from the hardest-hit area in Kerr County. Crucially, he stated that his staff meteorologists noted high moisture content in the region and, in accordance with state regulations, called off their operations. This detail highlights the responsible practices of legitimate weather modification companies, contrasting sharply with the reckless accusations leveled against them.
The Science vs. The Conspiracy: Why Cloud Seeding Didn't Cause the Floods
Meteorologists are unequivocal in their dismissal of cloud seeding as a cause for the Texas floods. The scientific consensus is clear: cloud seeding can, in specific conditions, enhance precipitation from existing clouds, but it cannot create storms of this magnitude or intensity from scratch. The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation maintains a page detailing authorized weather modification efforts in the state, demonstrating the regulated nature of the practice.
Matt Lanza, a digital meteorologist based in Houston, explained the limitations of cloud seeding, comparing it to adding “icing to a cake.” It can slightly augment precipitation in areas where conditions are already favorable, particularly in drier climates, but it lacks the power to generate or significantly intensify a storm system capable of delivering a month's worth of rain in a few hours over a wide area.
The meteorological ingredients for the Texas floods were already present due to natural weather patterns. As early as the Tuesday before the floods, the National Weather Service had issued warnings about potential nighttime downpours. A significant factor was moisture streaming northward from Tropical Storm Barry, which had made landfall in Mexico the previous weekend. This influx of tropical moisture provided the necessary fuel for the intense rainfall.
“The meteorological ingredients [for the storm] were already there, and cloud seeding could not have played a role,” Lanza affirmed. The complex interplay of atmospheric pressure systems, moisture transport, and localized conditions created the environment for the extreme rainfall event. Attributing it to cloud seeding ignores the fundamental science of meteorology and the limited capabilities of current weather modification technologies.
The Broader Context: Why Weather Conspiracies Persist
Conspiracy theories surrounding weather manipulation are not new. Fears about governments or other entities controlling the weather have circulated for decades, often fueled by mistrust of authority, scientific illiteracy, and a desire for simple explanations for complex or unpredictable events like natural disasters. Projects like HAARP (High-frequency Active Auroral Research Program), a legitimate scientific research facility, have often been misrepresented in conspiracy circles as a tool for weather control or other nefarious purposes.
The Texas floods incident highlights how these long-standing fears are being weaponized and amplified in the current information landscape. The speed and reach of social media allow baseless claims to spread rapidly, often outpacing efforts to provide accurate information. When these theories are endorsed or promoted by figures with large platforms, whether extremist leaders or elected officials, they gain a veneer of legitimacy that can convince vulnerable individuals.
Augustus Doricko's experience also sheds light on another aspect: the targeting of individuals or companies associated with the technology. Doricko's public profile, including past associations with figures like Bill Clinton and Peter Thiel, seems to have made him an easier target for those seeking a conspiratorial narrative. He has publicly stated his commitment to transparency regarding cloud seeding, acknowledging it as a controversial subject that warrants open discussion and regulation. However, this transparency did not shield him from the onslaught of false accusations and threats.
“I am trying to be as transparent as possible, because this is an incredibly controversial subject but isn't actually as regulated and discussed transparently as it ought to be by the federal government,” Doricko said, directly addressing some of the common tropes used against him. “Just for the record, I'm not a deep state plant from either Bill Gates or Palantir, Peter Thiel or Bill Clinton.” His statement underscores the need to counter specific conspiracy narratives directly, while also advocating for more open dialogue about the technology itself.
The Dangerous Intersection of Disinformation and Political Rhetoric
The involvement of elected officials like Marjorie Taylor Greene in promoting weather modification conspiracy theories is particularly concerning. When lawmakers echo or legitimize such claims, it lends credibility to baseless narratives and can influence public perception and even policy discussions, as seen with the Florida bill and Greene's proposed legislation. This blurs the lines between legitimate political discourse and the amplification of dangerous falsehoods.
The push for legislation based on debunked conspiracy theories poses a risk not only to legitimate scientific research and practices like cloud seeding (which is primarily used for beneficial purposes like drought relief or increasing water supply) but also to the public's understanding of science and natural phenomena. It can erode trust in scientific institutions, weather services, and the media, creating a climate where accurate information is dismissed in favor of sensational or ideologically aligned narratives.
The threats against NOAA personnel, who operate the vital Nexrad radar systems, further illustrate the danger. NOAA spokesperson Erica Grow Cei confirmed that “NOAA is aware of recent threats against NEXRAD weather radar sites and is working with local and other authorities in monitoring the situation closely.” This highlights that the targets of these conspiracies are not just abstract entities but dedicated public servants whose work is essential for protecting lives and property.
Conclusion: The Urgent Need to Counter Disinformation
The aftermath of the Texas floods serves as a stark reminder of the real-world dangers posed by unchecked disinformation. What begins as baseless speculation online can quickly metastasize into threats against individuals, vandalism of critical infrastructure, and the erosion of trust in science and public institutions.
The amplification of these theories by anti-government extremists and political figures creates a toxic environment where facts are disregarded, and those working to provide accurate information or essential services become targets. The attack on the News 9 radar and the death threats against Augustus Doricko are not isolated incidents but direct consequences of a deliberate campaign to sow doubt and distrust.
Countering this wave of disinformation requires a multi-faceted approach. It involves robust fact-checking and debunking efforts, but also addressing the underlying reasons why people are susceptible to conspiracy theories, such as mistrust, lack of scientific literacy, and feelings of powerlessness. Furthermore, social media platforms must take responsibility for the role they play in the spread of harmful content, and public figures must be held accountable for amplifying dangerous falsehoods.
Ultimately, the focus should remain on the human tragedy of the Texas floods and the vital work of emergency responders, meteorologists, and scientists who provide essential services and accurate information. Allowing conspiracy theories to dominate the narrative not only disrespects the victims but also actively undermines efforts to prepare for and mitigate the impacts of future natural disasters.
The events surrounding the Texas floods underscore a critical challenge of our time: how to navigate a complex information environment where truth is constantly under assault. The safety and well-being of communities depend not only on effective emergency response but also on the ability to distinguish fact from fiction and reject dangerous conspiracy narratives that threaten both individuals and essential public services.