Austin, TX
Largest fentanyl spike in decade puts Austin on high alert
AUSTIN, Texas — Capt. Christa Stedman of Austin-Travis County EMS says their overdose heat map from last week shows a troubling drug scenario that led to at least 79 separate incidents and nine deaths in the greater Austin area.
“The thing that makes this surge so different than others is most of these people weren’t trying to take opioids,” Stedman said. “They were trying to use multiple different substances — crack cocaine, methamphetamine, K2.”
If there is a silver-lining, the 17-year field expert said it was the city’s quick response teams and dispersal of hundreds of units of naloxone to counteract the deadly street narcotic.
“Some of those additional adjustments were putting additional commanders out on the street, running calls,” Stedman said. “Our community health team distributing Narcan, essentially giving it to anyone they passed.”
While the surge is reportedly over, those responsible for the spike are still mostly unknown. Patrick Eastlick, a lieutenant with the Austin Police Department’s Organized Crime Unit, says five arrests were made involving the selling of this illicit drug. However, the suspects haven’t been directly linked to this deadly batch and whether a larger local supplier or even Mexican cartels are involved is still part of an ongoing investigation.
“Step by step, we go after the dealers, street level or higher up and just keep following leads to get to the main source,” Eastlick said.
According to a recent report from ATCEMS, Travis County has about twice as many opioid overdose deaths as any other in Texas. It’s a sobering reminder of the dangers of putting any unknown substance into your body.
“You don’t know where it came from,” Stedman said. “Even if you got it from your friend despite their best interests, unless you got it from somewhere legitimate, you’re just taking a gamble.”
AUSTIN (KXAN) — Texas’ highway system dropped two spots since 2025, and now ranks at No. 27 in the country for its cost-effectiveness and overall conditions, according to the Reason Foundation’s 2026 Highway Report.
The report assessed pavement conditions, fatalities, deficient bridges, infrastructure costs and congestion levels across the United States. Texas earned the following rankings:
- 33rd in urban interstate pavement conditions
- 21st in rural interstate pavement conditions
- 39th in urban arterial pavement conditions
- 12th in rural arterial pavement conditions
- 3rd in structurally deficient bridges
- 26th in urban fatality rate
- 42nd in rural fatality rate
- 41st in traffic congestion
“More than 42,000 of the nation’s 618,923 highway bridges, nearly 7%, are still structurally deficient. Arizona, Nevada, and Texas reported the lowest percentages of deficient bridges,” the report said.
The full report can be found online.
AUSTIN (KXAN) — Small hail peppered the Austin area as strong thunderstorms moved through Saturday.
A few of the storms dropped rain and up to pea-sized hail in San Marcos, Dripping Springs and the Austin metro area.
A Severe Thunderstorm Warning was issued for Williamson County around 8:15 p.m., and then canceled shortly after. However, it was enough for the Two Step Inn music festival in Georgetown to cancel shows for the rest of the evening. Event organizers say the festival will run as planned Sunday.
KXAN’s First Warning Weather team is monitoring the storms. We will update this post as the evening continues.
AUSTIN (KXAN) — Governor Greg Abbott and the Texas Society Sons of the American Revolution unveiled a new monument at the Texas State Cemetery on Saturday, dedicated to Texas Revolutionary War soldiers.
“We must educate every generation about why it is that America grew from a tenuous 13 colonies into the most powerful country in the history of the world,” said Governor Abbott. “This monument here is an enduring testament to the heroes who fought for the freedom that is unique to America.”
The monument was dedicated to 69 soldiers who fought in the American Revolutionary War and later settled in Texas, according to a press release.
Among those that were honored, Abbott recognized:
- José Santiago Seguín, grandfather of Texas Revolutionary hero Juan Seguín.
- Peter Sides, who fought in the 2nd Battalion of the North Carolina Regiment of the Colonial Army, and was later killed in the 1813 Battle of Medina, fighting for Mexican independence against Spain.
- Antonio Gil Y’Barbo, the founder of Nacogdoches.
- William Sparks, who fought as a mounted rifleman in the American Revolution and later settled in Texas. He had two sons and two grandsons who fought in the Texas Revolution.
“This year marks the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution, which not only gave freedom to the British colonies of North America, but inspired movements for freedom and liberty all over the world,” said TSSAR President Mel Oller. “Texans played a role in the war too, and it’s important to recognize them, and the sacrifices they made for our freedom.”
At the monument unveiling, Abbott was also inducted into the Sons of the American Revolution and received its Silver Good Citizenship Medal.
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