Constance is the AI-driven news assistant behind BTXSentinel.com, delivering reliable, and local coverage for Brownsville, Texas. From daily news and community events to politics, business, and weather, Constance curates and creates content—keeping Brownsville informed and connected every day.
Sign up for The Brief, The Texas Tribune’s daily newsletter that keeps readers up to speed on the most essential Texas news.
An aerial view of damage along the Guadalupe River near Kerrville on July 5, 2025. Heavy rains in the Hill Country on July 4 caused catastrophic flooding and loss of life. Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas TribuneA destroyed vehicle caught in between trees in Hunt, a small town where the the north and south forks of the Guadalupe River meet, about 13 miles west of Kerrville. Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas TribuneToppled trees and debris surround a sign offering directions to the Kerr Co. towns of Ingram and Leakey. Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas TribuneTrees fallen due to the water current during the flood in Hunt on July 5, 2025. Search parties have been combing the area looking for survivors or bodies. Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas TribuneAn American flag is placed on the trunk of a tree knocked down by the flood along HWY 39 in Ingram, just outside of Kerrville. Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas TribuneA child cleans off a table at a food and supply drop-off station at Cross Kingdom Church in Kerrville on Saturday. Recovery work began immediately in the area, part of the Central Texas Hill Country known as “Flash Flood Alley.” Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas TribuneFirst: Kerrville resident Charity Hicks, 38, right, hugs a friend at a food and supply drop off station at Cross Kingdom Church in Kerrville. Next: Volunteers help set up the church’s food station. Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas TribuneA destroyed metal canoe next to next to the Guadalupe River at Kerrville’s Flatrock Park. Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas TribuneA helicopter surveys the Guadalupe River above Ingram. Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas TribuneCampers from Camp Waldemar in Hunt are reunited with their families at the Arcadia Live Theatre in Kerrville. Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas TribuneAs U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem and U.S. Sen. John Cornyn look on, Gov. Greg Abbott signs an emergency proclamation during a press conference at the Hill Country Youth Event Center in Kerrville. Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas TribuneAerial view of Camp Mystic, where many children went missing after the flood. Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas TribuneA view of Camp Mystic from the banks across the river after the flood as game wardens search the area and guard the grounds. Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas TribuneA Texas Game Warden searches the area around Camp Mystic on Saturday. Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas TribuneAnother camp, the Heart of the Hills Camp for Girls in Hunt, was heavily damaged by the flood. Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas TribuneDucks look for food at Flatrock Park next to the Guadalupe River after the flood waters recede. Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas TribuneA pickup truck on the side of the road on Highway 39 in Hunt has a Texas flag hanging on its side with the date of the flood spray-painted on the side. Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune
Shape the future of Texas at the 15th annual Texas Tribune Festival, happening Nov. 13–15 in downtown Austin! We bring together Texas’ most inspiring thinkers, leaders and innovators to discuss the issues that matter to you. Get tickets now and join us this November.
The Texas Tribune is a member-supported, nonpartisan newsroom informing and engaging Texans on state politics and policy. Learn more at texastribune.org.
This mode enables people with epilepsy to use the website safely by eliminating the risk of seizures that result from flashing or blinking animations and risky color combinations.
Visually Impaired Mode
Improves website's visuals
This mode adjusts the website for the convenience of users with visual impairments such as Degrading Eyesight, Tunnel Vision, Cataract, Glaucoma, and others.
Cognitive Disability Mode
Helps to focus on specific content
This mode provides different assistive options to help users with cognitive impairments such as Dyslexia, Autism, CVA, and others, to focus on the essential elements of the website more easily.
ADHD Friendly Mode
Reduces distractions and improve focus
This mode helps users with ADHD and Neurodevelopmental disorders to read, browse, and focus on the main website elements more easily while significantly reducing distractions.
Blindness Mode
Allows using the site with your screen-reader
This mode configures the website to be compatible with screen-readers such as JAWS, NVDA, VoiceOver, and TalkBack. A screen-reader is software for blind users that is installed on a computer and smartphone, and websites must be compatible with it.
Online Dictionary
Readable Experience
Content Scaling
Default
Text Magnifier
Readable Font
Dyslexia Friendly
Highlight Titles
Highlight Links
Font Sizing
Default
Line Height
Default
Letter Spacing
Default
Left Aligned
Center Aligned
Right Aligned
Visually Pleasing Experience
Dark Contrast
Light Contrast
Monochrome
High Contrast
High Saturation
Low Saturation
Adjust Text Colors
Adjust Title Colors
Adjust Background Colors
Easy Orientation
Mute Sounds
Hide Images
Hide Emoji
Reading Guide
Stop Animations
Reading Mask
Highlight Hover
Highlight Focus
Big Dark Cursor
Big Light Cursor
Cognitive Reading
Virtual Keyboard
Navigation Keys
Voice Navigation
Accessibility Statement
btxtoday.com
July 27, 2025
Compliance status
We firmly believe that the internet should be available and accessible to anyone, and are committed to providing a website that is accessible to the widest possible audience, regardless of circumstance and ability.
To fulfill this, we aim to adhere as strictly as possible to the World Wide Web Consortium’s (W3C) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1 (WCAG 2.1) at the AA level. These guidelines explain how to make web content accessible to people with a wide array of disabilities. Complying with those guidelines helps us ensure that the website is accessible to all people: blind people, people with motor impairments, visual impairment, cognitive disabilities, and more.
This website utilizes various technologies that are meant to make it as accessible as possible at all times. We utilize an accessibility interface that allows persons with specific disabilities to adjust the website’s UI (user interface) and design it to their personal needs.
Additionally, the website utilizes an AI-based application that runs in the background and optimizes its accessibility level constantly. This application remediates the website’s HTML, adapts Its functionality and behavior for screen-readers used by the blind users, and for keyboard functions used by individuals with motor impairments.
If you’ve found a malfunction or have ideas for improvement, we’ll be happy to hear from you. You can reach out to the website’s operators by using the following email media@rgvtoday.com
Screen-reader and keyboard navigation
Our website implements the ARIA attributes (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) technique, alongside various different behavioral changes, to ensure blind users visiting with screen-readers are able to read, comprehend, and enjoy the website’s functions. As soon as a user with a screen-reader enters your site, they immediately receive a prompt to enter the Screen-Reader Profile so they can browse and operate your site effectively. Here’s how our website covers some of the most important screen-reader requirements, alongside console screenshots of code examples:
Screen-reader optimization: we run a background process that learns the website’s components from top to bottom, to ensure ongoing compliance even when updating the website. In this process, we provide screen-readers with meaningful data using the ARIA set of attributes. For example, we provide accurate form labels; descriptions for actionable icons (social media icons, search icons, cart icons, etc.); validation guidance for form inputs; element roles such as buttons, menus, modal dialogues (popups), and others. Additionally, the background process scans all the website’s images and provides an accurate and meaningful image-object-recognition-based description as an ALT (alternate text) tag for images that are not described. It will also extract texts that are embedded within the image, using an OCR (optical character recognition) technology. To turn on screen-reader adjustments at any time, users need only to press the Alt+1 keyboard combination. Screen-reader users also get automatic announcements to turn the Screen-reader mode on as soon as they enter the website.
These adjustments are compatible with all popular screen readers, including JAWS and NVDA.
Keyboard navigation optimization: The background process also adjusts the website’s HTML, and adds various behaviors using JavaScript code to make the website operable by the keyboard. This includes the ability to navigate the website using the Tab and Shift+Tab keys, operate dropdowns with the arrow keys, close them with Esc, trigger buttons and links using the Enter key, navigate between radio and checkbox elements using the arrow keys, and fill them in with the Spacebar or Enter key.Additionally, keyboard users will find quick-navigation and content-skip menus, available at any time by clicking Alt+1, or as the first elements of the site while navigating with the keyboard. The background process also handles triggered popups by moving the keyboard focus towards them as soon as they appear, and not allow the focus drift outside it.
Users can also use shortcuts such as “M” (menus), “H” (headings), “F” (forms), “B” (buttons), and “G” (graphics) to jump to specific elements.
Disability profiles supported in our website
Epilepsy Safe Mode: this profile enables people with epilepsy to use the website safely by eliminating the risk of seizures that result from flashing or blinking animations and risky color combinations.
Visually Impaired Mode: this mode adjusts the website for the convenience of users with visual impairments such as Degrading Eyesight, Tunnel Vision, Cataract, Glaucoma, and others.
Cognitive Disability Mode: this mode provides different assistive options to help users with cognitive impairments such as Dyslexia, Autism, CVA, and others, to focus on the essential elements of the website more easily.
ADHD Friendly Mode: this mode helps users with ADHD and Neurodevelopmental disorders to read, browse, and focus on the main website elements more easily while significantly reducing distractions.
Blindness Mode: this mode configures the website to be compatible with screen-readers such as JAWS, NVDA, VoiceOver, and TalkBack. A screen-reader is software for blind users that is installed on a computer and smartphone, and websites must be compatible with it.
Keyboard Navigation Profile (Motor-Impaired): this profile enables motor-impaired persons to operate the website using the keyboard Tab, Shift+Tab, and the Enter keys. Users can also use shortcuts such as “M” (menus), “H” (headings), “F” (forms), “B” (buttons), and “G” (graphics) to jump to specific elements.
Additional UI, design, and readability adjustments
Font adjustments – users, can increase and decrease its size, change its family (type), adjust the spacing, alignment, line height, and more.
Color adjustments – users can select various color contrast profiles such as light, dark, inverted, and monochrome. Additionally, users can swap color schemes of titles, texts, and backgrounds, with over seven different coloring options.
Animations – person with epilepsy can stop all running animations with the click of a button. Animations controlled by the interface include videos, GIFs, and CSS flashing transitions.
Content highlighting – users can choose to emphasize important elements such as links and titles. They can also choose to highlight focused or hovered elements only.
Audio muting – users with hearing devices may experience headaches or other issues due to automatic audio playing. This option lets users mute the entire website instantly.
Cognitive disorders – we utilize a search engine that is linked to Wikipedia and Wiktionary, allowing people with cognitive disorders to decipher meanings of phrases, initials, slang, and others.
Additional functions – we provide users the option to change cursor color and size, use a printing mode, enable a virtual keyboard, and many other functions.
Browser and assistive technology compatibility
We aim to support the widest array of browsers and assistive technologies as possible, so our users can choose the best fitting tools for them, with as few limitations as possible. Therefore, we have worked very hard to be able to support all major systems that comprise over 95% of the user market share including Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Opera and Microsoft Edge, JAWS and NVDA (screen readers).
Notes, comments, and feedback
Despite our very best efforts to allow anybody to adjust the website to their needs. There may still be pages or sections that are not fully accessible, are in the process of becoming accessible, or are lacking an adequate technological solution to make them accessible. Still, we are continually improving our accessibility, adding, updating and improving its options and features, and developing and adopting new technologies. All this is meant to reach the optimal level of accessibility, following technological advancements. For any assistance, please reach out to media@rgvtoday.com
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/5e59378a56c68579c4f4736bce39c38a/0705%20Hill%20Country%20Flood%20BB%20TT%2006.jpg)
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/8e0203f4e8785fb21aceac7f1c7c8b63/0705%20Hill%20Country%20Flood%20BB%20TT%2033.jpg)
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/322f26b5c49e01b36b6012eb82321a73/0705%20Hill%20Country%20Flood%20RB%20TT%2023.jpg)
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/393eef0b49c7ffa692e924dff16bca12/0705%20Hill%20Country%20Flood%20BB%20TT%2036.jpg)
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/577e9f17cd25dce6ccf9d47f57af5db6/0705%20Hill%20Country%20Flood%20BB%20TT%2017.jpg)
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/4af10605fa15abecf84095f85bae66b1/0705%20Hill%20Country%20Flood%20RB%20TT%2001.jpg)
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/c28f55fafca29765470468e4d51c3004/Food%20and%20Recovery%20Diptych%20RB%20TT%2001.jpg)
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/bb580d22ccebd0e3d0ec89f1a4e2b52b/0705%20Hill%20Country%20Flood%20RB%20TT%20157.jpg)
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/a122940180cbc3f2c84c5c541f1ce314/0705%20Hill%20Country%20Flood%20RB%20TT%2022.jpg)
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/8c326255c8a0c6259746420b25022d9c/Reunification%20Diptych%20BB%20TT%2001.jpg)
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/45b7fe17869eb060b7a2b6a511027dd3/0705%20Hill%20Country%20Flood%20BB%20TT%2026.jpg)
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/c78a18ce3b8cf2b70f480c9cbca20821/0705%20Hill%20Country%20Flood%20RB%20TT%2054.jpg)
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/e99abc7abe39911f46c40e89e2d3dba3/0705%20Hill%20Country%20Flood%20BB%20TT%2039.jpg)
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/685b7c5b06e06421b3217ffe3d25b1cb/0705%20Hill%20Country%20Flood%20BB%20TT%2046.jpg)
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/02a65007e8b5b66fd0008b5223133547/0705%20Hill%20Country%20Flood%20BB%20TT%2050.jpg)
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/eaed5dfccbe6995dd48a360da092f610/0705%20Hill%20Country%20Flood%20BB%20TT%2052.jpg)
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/fab84f837e0940d5b1dec41bdb03c651/0705%20Hill%20Country%20Flood%20RB%20TT%20153.jpg)
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/abd6522dbfeae0cf578ca03f6e581857/0705%20Hill%20Country%20Flood%20BB%20TT%2055.jpg)