Austin, TX
Texas active shooter alert system has yet to be activated, DPS says
AUSTIN (KXAN) — An alert system meant to notify people of active shooter situations was not activated in the wake of a deadly shooting at a Juneteenth event in Round Rock, law enforcement confirmed to KXAN investigators.
Two people died and 14 others were injured in the incident, sparked by a fight between two groups at the event at Old Settlers Park on Saturday night, Round Rock police said. Police are still searching for the shooting suspect.
A spokesperson for the department said it did not try to activate the Active Shooter Alert System at the time of the shooting because it determined the incident did not meet the criteria required by Texas law for activation.
In fact, the Texas Department of Public Safety said it has yet to receive a request for the system’s activation since its creation in 2021, despite its stated goal of “saving lives and preventing mass violence.”
Representative Brooks Landgraf (R-Odessa) filed legislation to create the system in the wake of a mass shooting that killed seven people and injured 25 others in Odessa in 2019.
It is designed to alert people near active shooter situations through their phones, as well as local broadcast media, the electronic signs on state highways known as “dynamic message signs” and other resources. The idea was to model the warning system after other emergency alerts, such as those used to notify people of abducted children (AMBER Alerts), missing seniors (Silver Alerts), or when members of law enforcement are critically injured (Blue Alerts).
Law enforcement agencies have to request the Active Shooter Alert System’s activation, and the incident must meet several specific criteria:
- An active shooter is in the requesting agency’s jurisdiction
- There is a determination that an Active Shooter Alert would assist individuals near the active shooter’s location
- Verification exists of the active shooter situation through a preliminary investigation by the requesting agency
- The active shooter’s last known location is identifiable
Texas Representative Vikki Goodwin told KXAN she believes it is “tragic” that the system is not being utilized.
“We pass laws to make people safer. This one in particular to let people know if there is an active shooting event going on so they can take precaution,” Goodwin told KXAN. “Nobody was aware that this shooting was going on. Some people said they thought it was fireworks, at first, but then they saw people running. So, I think it would have been helpful for an alert to go out.”
Rep. Goodwin said she believes there is an increased need for public awareness in cases where the suspect has not been apprehended. She first spoke out about the use of this system in December 2023, after a suspect allegedly shot and killed several people in different locations across Travis and Bexar Counties.
At the time, Austin police said they did not request the Active Shooter Alert System because the situation was not an “active shooting event.”
A spokesperson said, “This was a series of events which took place in several different locations across the city with various or unknown motives and no specific commonality. It is not common practice for APD, or any other law enforcement agency, to issue any sort of alert for every shooting that happens in their jurisdiction with an unidentified shooter.”
Goodwin said she met with DPS and APD to discuss how to use it better, but she “did not really see any appetite for doing that.”
She has heard concerns from law enforcement that people might be “inundated” with alerts and then become numb or desensitized. However, she feels there could be more narrow parameters or guidelines around when the system is activated.
“We get a lot of AMBER Alerts, and so we feel like, ‘Oh my gosh, another amber alert.’ But yet, that one alert at the right moment for the right person might save a life, so why not.”
2026 USA Triathlon Cross National Championships Full Results
Austin, Texas | April 18
Off Road/Cross Triathlon National Championship
1500m swim, 29k mountain bike, 10k run
Complete Results
Overall Male Andy Lee, 2:25:17
Overall Female Jennifer Schmidt, 3:08:37
M17-19 Michael Balbin, 3:07:57
M20-24 Ryan Chaudoin 2:39:03
M25-29 Adam Holomoucky, 2:46:30
M30-34 Chase Krivo, 2:41:52
M35-39 Andrzej Stadnik, 2:26:34
F35-39 Kate Hector, 3:44:19
M40-44 Kyle Grieser, 2:30:58
F40-44 Jessica Thiel, 3:31:57
M45-49 Trent Niemeyer, 2:36:28
F45-49 Jennifer Schmidt, 3:08:37
M50-54 Andy Lee, 2:25:17
F50-54 Erin Trail, 4:03:32
M55-59 Stephen Judice, 2:39:58
F55-59 Jeanne Hoffman, 3:25:37
M60-64 Mike Carter, 2:58:35
F60-64 Janet Soule, 3:13:05
M65-69 Cliff Millemann, 3:04:24
F65-69 Maureen Sanderson, 5:01:15
M70-74 Ken Gibson, 3:13:21
M75-79 Alan Moore, 3:50:08
Off Road/Cross Duathlon National Championship
5k run, 29k mountain bike, 10k run
Complete Results
Overall Male Jacob Hull, 2:19:49
Overall Female Tiffany Schwartz, 2:55:45
M30-34 Kyle Dow, 2:27:13
M35-39 Jacob Hull, 2:19:49
F35-39 Tiffany Schwartz, 2:55:45
M40-44 Derek Armer-Derner, 2:51:48
M50-54 Jay Moncel, 3:27:42
F50-54 Heather Anderson, 4:38:10
M55-59 CJ Stafford, 4:57:04
F55-59 Yun Saksena, 4:09:05
M60-64 Robb Reece, 3:24:41
M65-69 Brent Peacock, 2:50:00
M70-74 Mark Lindsey, 4:18:47
Off Road/Cross Triathlon Sprint National Championship
750m swim, 12k mountain bike, 5k run
Complete Results
Overall Male Tavish Quinn, 1:16:29
Overall Female Michelle Lingenfelser, 1:52:31
M14- C. Lockett, 1:35:47
M15-19 Tavish Quinn, 1:16:29
M35-39 Michael Schleckser, 1:50:47
M40-44 Justin Young, 1:45:18
F40-44 Laura Marinaro, 1:59:40
M45-49 Daniel Rossi, 1:24:42
F45-49 Nicole Morgan, 1:54:49
M50-54 Angel Martinez Ineriano, 1:31:35
F50-54 Michelle Lingenfelser, 1:52:31
M55-59 Stephen Schwarze, 1:25:14
M60-64 Curtis Miller, 1:40:54
F60-64 Nancy Hopf, 2:07:36
M65-69 Mark Drangsholt, 1:46:218
F65-69 Gunilla Gard, 2:10:15
M70-74 Steve Cole, 1:36:54
F70-74 Susan Griffin-Kaklikian, 1:57:23
Off Road/Cross Duathlon Sprint National Championship
2.5k run, 12k mountain bike, 5k run
Complete Results
Overall Male Saxby Stradinger 1:09:25
Overall Female Monica Doval, 1:38:49
Overall Clydesdale Trevor Horton, 2:23:56
Clydesdale 0-39 Trevor Horton, 2:23:56
Clydesdale 40-59 Bramer Owens, 1:47:40
M15-19 Callen Quinn, 1:34:58
M30-34 Brian Scheel, 1:43:43
M35-39 Saxby Stradinger 1:09:25
M40-44 Bryce Fluker, 1:11:52
F40-44 Morgan Aldridge, 1:39:23
M45-49 Michael Szermer, 1:34:03
F45-49 Monica Doval, 1:38:49
F50-54 Anonymous, 2:04:11
M55-59 Travis Wales, 1:19:48
F55-59 Lupe Nelson, 2:08:03
M60-64 Steve Smith, 1:14:18
F60-64 Kim Wagner, 2:23:41
M65-69 Joseph Swartz, 1:46:33
F65-69 Christine Knight, 1:57:14
M80-84 Bill Arnerich, 3:30:30
AUSTIN, Texas – This week’s rainfall across Central Texas could help to bring a much-needed boost to the region’s aquifers, which have been operating at dangerously low levels.
The backstory:
On Tuesday, the Austin area saw over an inch of rain while Georgetown received close to six inches, as the San Gabriel River rose over six feet throughout the day.
But the heavy downpour was a welcome sight for Shay Hlavaty, the communications and outreach manager at the Barton Springs Edwards Aquifer Conservation District.
Created by the state of Texas in 1987, the District oversees segments of the Edwards and Trinity Aquifers, stretching from South Austin to southern San Marcos.
In total, the portions of the aquifers they oversee provide water to around 100,000 people.
“Groundwater is a significant water source, you know. It’s kind of the unsung hero of Texas,” says Hlavaty.
But over the last few years, the region’s groundwater levels have been in decline.
“Since January 2022, we are missing over a year’s worth of rainfall. So, in the Austin area, we get about 32 to 34 inches a year. And so over that time, we have, you know, a 30-plus inch deficit,” says Hlavaty.
Since October, the District has been under a stage three exceptional drought. Those conditions are determined by two indicators: spring flow at Barton Springs and groundwater levels at the Lovelady Monitor Well.
If either of these locations drops below a drought threshold, the District could declare a more intense drought stage.
By the numbers:
Some of the latest data shows that Barton Springs isn’t performing as it needs to support the ongoing growth of the region.
“To put it into reference, the average since about 1978 at Barton springs is 60 CFS. That’s cubic feet per second. And one cubic foot is about the size of a beach ball, an average beach ball. So, 60 beach balls of water coming out every second from Barton Springs. Before this rainfall, we were closer to 12 CFS, so only 12 beach balls coming out every second, so that’s less than a quarter of average,” says Hlavaty.
That same data also shows that the Lovelady Well is 453.8 feet above mean sea level. That’s only 5 inches above the Stage 4 Emergency Response Threshold.
“This isn’t something that’s going to go away. Even if we busted this drought and get out of it, the next drought is going to be around the corner,” says Hlavaty.
Dig deeper:
But this week’s rain did provide a small boost, helping to prevent the district from potentially falling into a deeper stage of drought.
“So, we’re still in that stage three exceptional level, and this rainfall will help us stay out of that stage four emergency,” Hlavaty told FOX 7. “It’ll help stabilize, if not increase groundwater levels and spring flow.”
The total rainfall for the Austin area in April so far is 4.14 inches, well above the typical total average for the month, which is 2.42 inches. But that sort of above precipitation must continue if there is to be any chance of drought levels decreasing.
“We really need to have above average rainfall for months, if not years, to bust this drought,” says Hlavaty.
What you can do:
As May approaches, which typically brings the most rainfall throughout the year, Hlavaty urges people to cut back on water use when they can, especially watering their lawns, which can consume large amounts of drinking water.
And as Central Texas continues to see a boom in population, combined with hotter than average temperatures for February and March, conservation is as important as ever.
“It’s important to remember that a little bit of rain here, a little bit of rain there, isn’t going to best the drought. So, we all have to do our role to help conserve resources in the meantime,” says Hlavaty.
The Source: Information from interviews conducted by FOX 7 Austin’s Marco Bitonel
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