Austin, TX
Canceled Texas Eclipse Festival leaves travelers scrambling
Canceled Texas Eclipse Festival in Burnet
Travelers were left scrambling after the Texas Eclipse Festival at Revielle Peak Ranch was canceled due to severe weather.
BURNET COUNTY, Texas – Hours before totality, the Texas Eclipse Festival at Revielle Peak Ranch was canceled, leaving a surge of travelers scrambling.
On Monday afternoon, traffic was backed up for miles on SH 29 going from the venue to Burnet.
FOX 7 Austin caught up with Frankie Bernard III, from California, in Burnet, who says he paid thousands of dollars to go to the festival.
“We woke up this morning, they’re like, ‘you’ve got to go, the storms are coming, like go,’ it’s like, ‘go where?’” he said. “You could tell everyone started to freak out, so we got ahead of it, but we could see it happening.”
He was able to beat the crowds heading out, but says it was a poorly planned event with too many people and not enough resources.
Texas Eclipse Festival canceled
The Texas Eclipse Festival in Burnet County was canceled Monday due to threats of severe weather.
“They literally had bulldozers out there, and they’re bulldozing trees down, so people could park, more people, more people, more people [kept coming], [there needed to be] better security, more water, more water, food,” he said.
FOX 7 drove to the ranch entrance and spoke to visitors from Washington, D.C. and Italy who were frustrated by the lack of communication and cell service.
In terms of traffic conditions, it took FOX 7 Austin 50 minutes on RM 2341 to get from the venue back on to SH 29. Our crew went west to Llano to put this story together, otherwise it would’ve taken us more than two and a half hours to get back to our station in downtown Austin on Monday evening.
Festival organizers say safety is their top priority, and they made the decision to cancel in conjunction with public officials, due to the risk of severe weather during the eclipse, Tuesday and Wednesday.
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Eclipse viewing party at Long Center
Austinites and travelers gathered together to share a once-in-a-lifetime moment at the Long Center.
They urged people to leave early to beat traffic, and that all programming was canceled. Guests could stay to watch the eclipse if they packed and left right after.
In a list of FAQs online, organizers said:
“We are all heartbroken. None of us wanted to be in this situation. We came here for the eclipse from around the country and the world. We know you have all gone to great lengths to be here. Now we’re getting severe storm forecasts and a clouded eclipse. It sucks. We ask that you please cooperate with us to move to safety.”
“I think it was more of a money thing for them, they’re like how much money can we generate before people freak out,” Bernard said.
He says once he got into Burnet, he was still able to see the eclipse, before heading back home to California.
“We figured this would be a good spot to try and see it, the cloud coverage was perfect, being able to experience it was beautiful,” he said.
Festival organizers say there will be communication going out about refunds.
For more information and updates, click here.
AUSTIN, Texas — A man walking his dog with his son was fatally shot by a neighbor Friday evening in Northwest Austin, police said.
Billy Carlisle, 41, was shot at the intersection of Gardenridge Hollow and Wallace Drive at approximately 6:06 p.m. May 8. Austin-Travis County EMS attempted lifesaving measures, but Carlisle was pronounced dead at 6:45 p.m.
Hunter Buchmeyer, 36, was taken into custody in connection with the shooting.
According to APD, Carlisle was walking his dog with his son when he and Buchmeyer, also walking his dog, got into a verbal altercation. The two neighbors had “prior history,” APD said.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE | APD investigating deadly shooting in NW Austin; suspect in custody
The dispute escalated to the point that Buchmeyer called 911 to report the altercation before shooting Carlisle. According to police, Buchmeyer yelled at someone to “get back” before the call disconnected.
Buchmeyer remained at the scene and attempted CPR on Carlisle before officers arrived.
No charges have been filed. APD said the investigation remains open.
The case is being investigated as Austin’s 23rd homicide of 2026.
Anyone with information is asked to contact APD at 512-974-TIPS or submit an anonymous tip through Capital Area Crime Stoppers at austincrimestoppers.org or 512-472-8477. A reward of up to $1,000 may be available for information leading to an arrest.
There was a significant reduction in the number of antisemitic incidents in Rhode Island in 2025, according to a national Jewish advocacy group.
According to the Anti-Defamation League’s latest Audit of Antisemitic Incidents, there were 26 antisemitic incidents in the state last year. That’s down from the 52 incidents counted by the group in 2024.
Samantha Joseph, New England regional director of the Anti-Defamation League, says a big reason for the reduction is a steep decline in antisemitism on college campuses.
“It shows that campus administrators are taking their responsibilities very seriously to provide a safe environment for all of their students,” said Joseph.
Brown University had over $500 million in federal funding frozen by the Trump administration last year following investigations into alleged antisemitism on campus. The funding was restored after Brown reached a settlement with the administration.
The reduction in antisemitic incidents in Rhode Island reflects a wider trend in New England as a whole. According to the ADL’s report, there were 400 antisemitic incidents in the region in 2025, compared to 638 the previous year.
While she’s pleased about the overall drop in antisemitic incidents in Rhode Island, Joseph says a number of concerning trends continue to persist. In particular, the state is still seeing more anti-Jewish incidents than it did prior to the October 7 attacks on Israel that launched the Gaza War in 2023.
Joseph is also concerned about the violent nature of local incidents of antisemitism.
“Even though overall incidents are down, assaults are up and assaults with a deadly weapon are up significantly,” said Joseph. “Our communities remain concerned for their safety, and our work is far from done.”
AUSTIN (KXAN) — Severe thunderstorms are possible Sunday evening as a cold front arrives in Central Texas. KXAN’s First Warning Weather Team will keep you updated on the weather coverage.
Risks to be aware of are damaging wind gusts that could reach as high as 60 to 75 mph and large hail up to quarter size.
Weather Resources:
Live Updates:
5:22 p.m.: A Severe Thunderstorm Watch is issued for all counties except for Milam County.
3:51 p.m.: A Severe Thunderstorm Watch has been issued for Mason, San Saba, and Lampasas County until 9:00 p.m.
3:30 p.m.: The primary risk for Sunday’s severe weather is damaging wind gusts which could cause power outages.
3:26 p.m.: Storms will likely move toward the I-35 corridor around 6 p.m. Most of the storms will enter the Hill Country around 6 p.m. and the Austin metro counties after 8 p.m.
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