Austin news

• LIVE: Grass fire in Dallas suburb spreads to homes, at least 14 burned

  25-07-2022 23:54 via kxan.com
  
  BALCH SPRINGS, Texas (KXAN/KXAS) — A fast-moving grass fire is now burning homes Monday in a neighborhood off Interstate 20 in a southeast Dallas suburb.NBC affiliate KXAS is reporting the fire has burned at least 14 homes in Balch Springs, located just south of Mesquite near I-20 and I-635, southeast of Dallas proper.Several other homes in the 4600 block of Leslie Lane appear to be threatened by the fire as well as homes on Broadview Drive.The local fire marshal said no injuries associate
  
  Read more

• LIVE: Grass fire in Dallas suburb spreading to homes, at least 8 burned so far

  25-07-2022 23:54 via kxan.com
  
  BALCH SPRINGS, Texas (KXAN/KXAS) — A fast-moving grass fire is now burning homes Monday in a neighborhood off Interstate 20 in a southeast Dallas suburb.NBC affiliate KXAS is reporting the fire has burned at least eight homes in Balch Springs, located just south of Mesquite near I-20 and I-635 and southeast of Dallas proper.Several other homes in the 4600 block of Leslie Lane appear to be threatened by the fire.
  The live picture above is from the KXAS helicopter.
  
  Read more

• LIVE: Grass fire in Dallas suburb spreading to homes, at least 3 burned so far

  25-07-2022 23:54 via kxan.com
  
  BALCH SPRINGS, Texas (KXAN/KXAS) — A fast-moving grass fire is now burning homes Monday in a neighborhood off Interstate 20 in a southeast Dallas suburb.NBC affiliate KXAS is reporting the fire has burned at least three homes in Balch Springs, located just south of Mesquite near I-20 and I-635 and southeast of Dallas proper.Several other homes in the 4600 block of Leslie Lane appear to be threatened by the fire.
  The live picture above is from the KXAS helicopter.
  
  Read more

• Grass fire in Dallas suburb spreads to homes, at least 14 burned

  25-07-2022 23:54 via kxan.com
  
  BALCH SPRINGS, Texas (KXAN/KXAS) — A fast-moving grass fire is now burning homes Monday in a neighborhood off Interstate 20 in a southeast Dallas suburb.NBC affiliate KXAS is reporting the fire has burned at least 14 homes in Balch Springs, located just south of Mesquite near I-20 and I-635, southeast of Dallas proper.Several other homes in the 4600 block of Leslie Lane appear to be threatened by the fire as well as homes on Broadview Drive.The local fire marshal said no injuries associate
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Grass fire in Dallas suburb spreads to homes, 9 destroyed

  25-07-2022 23:54 via kxan.com
  
  BALCH SPRINGS, Texas (KXAN/KXAS) — A fast-moving grass fire is now burning homes Monday in a neighborhood off Interstate 20 in a southeast Dallas suburb.NBC affiliate KXAS is reporting the fire destroyed nine homes in Balch Springs, located just south of Mesquite near I-20 and I-635, southeast of Dallas proper.
  Several other homes in the 4600 block of Leslie Lane appear to be threatened by the fire as well as homes on Broadview Drive.Shawn Davis, the local fire marshal, said no injuries as
  
  Read more

• Grass fire in Dallas suburb spreading to homes, at least 8 burned

  25-07-2022 23:54 via kxan.com
  
  BALCH SPRINGS, Texas (KXAN/KXAS) — A fast-moving grass fire is now burning homes Monday in a neighborhood off Interstate 20 in a southeast Dallas suburb.NBC affiliate KXAS is reporting the fire has burned at least eight homes in Balch Springs, located just south of Mesquite near I-20 and I-635 and southeast of Dallas proper.Several other homes in the 4600 block of Leslie Lane appear to be threatened by the fire.
  The local fire marshal said no injuries associated with the fire have been rep
  
  Read more

• Hottest summer on record continues with remarkably stagnant weather pattern

  25-07-2022 23:00 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- This final Monday of July 2022 will be the hottest day this week with a forecast of 104°. That is one degree shy of the record (105°) last set in 2011, first set in 1923. BLOG: Drought 2022: How it started and how it could endConfidence, such as it is, is high that this month will end with 29 days where the high temperature in Austin has climbed to 100° and higher. When all is said and done July 2022 will be the hottest July ever. Even the hottest high temperature th
  
  Read more

• 9 states seeing gas prices below $4 per gallon

  25-07-2022 22:51 via kxan.com
  
  INDIANAPOLIS (WXIN) -- Gas prices across the country continue to fall for the sixth week in a row. As of Monday, prices have even fallen below $4 per gallon in nine states.GasBuddy data show the national average is down 56.7 cents from June. However, prices are still more than a dollar per gallon higher than the same time in 2021.
  It isn't just regular gasoline prices that are falling. GasBuddy data shows the price of diesel has declined 13 cents in the last week. Analysts believe costs could go
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• CapMetro approves new fare capping program — here's how it works

  25-07-2022 22:38 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The CapMetro board of directors approved Monday two new programs to help limit transit fares and increase service access for income-eligible riders.What's fare capping?The first program, called fare capping, will help limit how much money riders spend on a daily or monthly basis. With fare capping, customers who have paid for two rides on the CapMetro system will be eligible for free rides the remainder of the day.For example: If someone rides CapMetro on their morning work
  
  Read more

• More than 40 dogs surrendered to Austin Animal Center after eviction

  25-07-2022 22:35 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Already over capacity, the Austin Animal Center took in more than 40 small dogs from one owner over the weekend, the agency said."We really need our community to come out and foster and adopt so that we have open kennels for cases like these," said Don Bland, the city's chief animal services officer.
  Working with the Travis County Constable's Office in an eviction, it was initially thought there were "at least 20 dogs," in the home. The owner ended up surrendering more than
  
  Read more

• A federal program for free lunches ended. Is your Central Texas school district offering free meals?

  25-07-2022 22:33 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Since March 2020, students across the country received free breakfasts and lunches thanks to a federal waiver. But that program ended June 30.
  Now, families will need to submit applications for reduced or free lunches depending on their income level. If the family does not qualify, school meals will be available at the district's set price.PREVIOUS: Free school meals for all set to end, what does it mean for your student?But some Central Texas school districts will continue
  
  Read more

• Meet the Texas teacher helping to fulfill classroom wish lists

  25-07-2022 21:07 via kxan.com
  
  BASTROP, Texas (KXAN) — Bastrop resident Kylie DeFrance knows all too well the expensive costs of back-to-school supplies. Entering her eighth year of teaching this August, she's used to spending hundreds of dollars out of pocket on paper, crayons, tissues and other daily items student use.This year though, inflation levels have exacerbated those costs. A 2022 Deloitte survey found families will spend an average of $661 per child this year on back-to-school supplies — up 8% compared
  
  Read more

• Back to school: When do local districts begin classes?

  25-07-2022 20:45 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Students across Central Texas will be returning to the classroom in just a few weeks.Back-to-school dates range from Aug. 8 in Cherokee ISD to Aug. 23 in Smithville ISD.To help keep track of all the dates, KXAN has created a map and compiled a list showing the first day of classes in each district in the KXAN viewing area. RELATED COVERAGE: Several local districts still have unfilled teacher positions a month before school startsHover over or click on any district in the ma
  
  Read more

• Beached, emaciated endangered sea turtles admitted to Texas State Aquarium

  25-07-2022 19:45 via kxan.com
  
  CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (KXAN) — As many Texans flock to the state's beaches during the summer months, some sea turtles have also made their way to the Texas coast — and an increasing number of them are getting stranded.‘Cold-stunned’ endangered sea turtles released back into wild after Texas freezeThe Amos Rehabilitation Keep has rescued about 60 live loggerhead sea turtles, an endangered species found in U.S. coastal waters, since April. When eight more of the large turtl
  
  Read more

• San Gabriel Fire burning near Liberty Hill now 90% contained

  25-07-2022 19:31 via kxan.com
  
  WILLIAMSON COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — Leaders in Williamson County will provide an update on Monday afternoon about a wildfire that's been burning near Liberty Hill.
  The fire, named the San Gabriel Fire, sparked Saturday near Tower Road and has since burned 500 acres, according to the county. As of Monday morning, the blaze was 75% contained.PAST STORY: Wildfire in Liberty Hill burns 500 acresThe fire forced evacuations of 200 homes in the area Saturday, but residents were allowed to return by
  
  Read more

• LIVE: Leaders give update on 500-acre wildfire near Liberty Hill

  25-07-2022 19:31 via kxan.com
  
  WILLIAMSON COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — Leaders in Williamson County will provide an update on Monday afternoon about a wildfire that's been burning near Liberty Hill.
  The fire, named the San Gabriel Fire, sparked Saturday near Tower Road and has since burned 500 acres, according to the county. As of Monday morning, the blaze was 75% contained.PAST STORY: Wildfire in Liberty Hill burns 500 acresThe fire forced evacuations of 200 homes in the area Saturday, but residents were allowed to return by
  
  Read more

• Leaders to give update on 500-acre wildfire near Liberty Hill

  25-07-2022 19:31 via kxan.com
  
  WILLIAMSON COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — Leaders in Williamson County will provide an update on Monday afternoon about a wildfire that's been burning near Liberty Hill.
  The fire, named the San Gabriel Fire, sparked Saturday near Tower Road and has since burned 500 acres, according to the county. As of Monday morning, the blaze was 75% contained.PAST STORY: Wildfire in Liberty Hill burns 500 acresThe fire forced evacuations of 200 homes in the area Saturday, but residents were allowed to return by
  
  Read more

• Woman fires gun inside Dallas Love Field airport

  25-07-2022 19:01 via kxan.com
  
  DALLAS (KXAN) — A woman walked into Dallas Love Field airport Monday morning and fired multiple gunshots toward the ceiling, Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia said.An officer inside the airport shot the 37-year-old woman in the "lower extremities." She was taken into custody and transported to Parkland Hospital in Dallas. No one else was injured in the shooting, Garcia said.Garcia said the woman was dropped off at the airport and walked into a restroom near the ticket counters around 10:59
  
  Read more

• Reported shots fired at Dallas Love Field airport

  25-07-2022 19:01 via kxan.com
  
  DALLAS (KXAN) — Police responded to a shots fired call at Dallas Love Field airport Monday morning, according to a Dallas Police Department social media post.Dallas PD said the terminal is secure. Police Chief Eddie Garcia is expected to provide an update around 12:10 p.m. CT.It's unclear if there are any injuries connected to the reports.The Federal Aviation Administration told NBCDFW all flights in to Love Field are currently being held at their departure location until 12:30 p.m. Planes
  
  Read more

• VIDEO: Central Texans dazzled by late night fireball sightings

  25-07-2022 18:09 via kxan.com
  
  LOCKHART, Texas (KXAN) — A bright fireball streaking across the Sunday night sky dazzled Central Texas residents whose home security cameras captured the rare sighting.
  The American Meteor Society (AMS), a nonprofit that tracks meteor astronomy, received at least 219 reports of people seeing the fireball Sunday mostly in Texas, but some even spotted it in states like Oklahoma and Louisiana. WATCH: Dust devil spotted near Rainey Street in AustinA post online from the organization stated, "T
  
  Read more

• LIVE: Central Texans dazzled by late night fireball sightings

  25-07-2022 18:09 via kxan.com
  
  LOCKHART, Texas (KXAN) — A bright fireball streaking across the Sunday night sky dazzled Central Texas residents whose home security cameras captured the rare sighting.
  The American Meteor Society (AMS), a nonprofit that tracks meteor astronomy, received at least 219 reports of people seeing the fireball Sunday mostly in Texas, but some even spotted it in states like Oklahoma and Louisiana. WATCH: Dust devil spotted near Rainey Street in AustinA post online from the organization stated, "T
  
  Read more

• TxDOT's 'human billboards' coming to busy Austin areas

  25-07-2022 17:03 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Yellow signs with phrases like "Braking News" and "Wait for the Signal" will be strapped to the backs of Texas Department of Transportation employees this Friday and Saturday in some of Austin's most popular areas.
  The department's human billboards campaign kicks off in the state's capital in hopes of lowering pedestrian fatalities.Last year in the Austin area, there were 453 traffic crashes involving pedestrians, resulting in 61 fatalities and 108 serious injuries, accordi
  
  Read more

• Deadly crash blocks lanes on I-35 SB frontage road in south Austin

  25-07-2022 16:25 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A pedestrian died after a car rolled over and hit them on the frontage road of Interstate 35 in south Austin Monday, according to Austin-Travis County EMS.
  ATCEMS said the crash occurred near 6000 S. I-35 service road southbound around 8:46 a.m. That's just south of Stassney Lane before William Cannon Drive.
  ATCEMS reported one vehicle rolled over and hit the pedestrian. The pedestrian was then pronounced dead at the scene.
  The person in the vehicle was rescued from being p
  
  Read more

• 1 dead in crash on I-35 SB frontage road in south Austin

  25-07-2022 16:25 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A pedestrian died after a car rolled over and hit them on the frontage road of Interstate 35 in south Austin Monday, according to Austin-Travis County EMS.
  ATCEMS said the crash occurred near 6000 S. I-35 service road southbound around 8:46 a.m. That's just south of Stassney Lane before William Cannon Drive.
  ATCEMS reported one vehicle rolled over and hit the pedestrian. The pedestrian was then pronounced dead at the scene.
  The person in the vehicle was rescued from being p
  
  Read more

• Jury selection to begin in Alex Jones' trial

  25-07-2022 14:30 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The jury for InfoWars host Alex Jones’ defamation case will be selected Monday.Jones was previously found liable for damages and had lost defamation cases after he said the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary school shooting was a hoax. On Dec. 14, 2012, a gunman killed 20 first-grade students and six staff members at the Connecticut school.On his media platforms, Jones later said he believed the shooting did happen, but he claimed he had the right to say i
  
  Read more

• TxDOT's $7.4 billion plan to upgrade Central Texas roads

  25-07-2022 13:08 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Texas Department of Transportation's $7.4 billion Unified Transportation Program or UTP plan is TxDOT's 10-year plan to guide the development of transportation work across the state.In Central Texas, that could include projects in 11 counties: Travis, Hays, Williamson, Bastrop, Burnet and Llano counties to name a few.Three groups sue TxDOT over I-35 improvement projectsSome projects in the 2023 UTP draft include:
  Widening Interstate 35 in Round Rock from State Highway 4
  
  Read more

• Tiff's Treats employees in Austin attempt to unionize

  25-07-2022 12:48 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (Austin Business Journal) — The trend of restaurant and food-service workers attempting to unionize can be seen around the nation — including in Austin.The latest local business to encounter the situation is Tiff's Treats, the chain of cookie eateries.Workers at two stores have filed paperwork with the National Labor Relations Board to start the process of forming a union — and workers at more stores are expected to follow suit in the coming days and weeks. 45th, Lamar l
  
  Read more

• UT program to help students get rid of items they don't need

  25-07-2022 12:34 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Three groups are making it easy for students at the University of Texas at Austin (UT) to get rid of unwanted items and keep them out of alleys and landfills.
  Austin Resource Recovery (ARR), the UT Office of Sustainability and the UT New Student Services Off-Campus Initiative will host MoveOutATX, an annual donation event in West Campus.
  Students can drop off unwanted furniture, household items, appliances, clothing, cleaning supplies, unopened food and more at six&nbs
  
  Read more

• Rally raises awareness of Texas' high incarceration rate

  25-07-2022 12:29 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Advocates gathered Sunday afternoon at an east Austin park to raise awareness about the high rate of incarceration in Texas and the United States.
  According to a 2021 report by the Prison Policy Initiative, Texas has the 10th-highest incarceration rate in the country.The report found Texas' rate was 840 per 100,000 people. Louisiana was number one at 1,094 per 100,000 people. The United States was the number one country with a rate of 664 per 100,000.Texas Advocates for Jus
  
  Read more

• Average gas price falls to $4.54 per gallon

  25-07-2022 11:56 via kxan.com
  
  CAMARILLO, Calif. (AP) — The average U.S. price of regular-grade gasoline plunged 32 cents over the past two weeks to $4.54 per gallon.Industry analyst Trilby Lundberg of the Lundberg Survey said Sunday that the continued decline comes as crude oil costs also fall.“Further drops at the pump are likely as the wholesale gasoline price cuts continue making their way to street level,” Lundberg said in a statement. TxDOT’s $7.4 billion plan to upgrade Central Texas roadsThe av
  
  Read more

• Triple digits continue with little to no rain in sight

  25-07-2022 11:30 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Monday looks to be the hottest day of the upcoming week with highs up near 104º along with fewer clouds during the afternoon.The forecast for the final week of July remains fairly dry and hot with triple digits each and every day.BLOG: Drought 2022: How it started and how it could end7 day high temperaturesIf the short-term forecast does hold then July will have had 29 out of 31 days where the high reached 100° or hotter.As high pressure shifts to the east we may be abl
  
  Read more

• Staying hotter than it should be

  25-07-2022 11:30 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- This final Monday of July 2022 will be the hottest day this week with a forecast of 104°. That is one degree shy of the record (105°) last set in 2011, first set in 1923. BLOG: Drought 2022: How it started and how it could endConfidence, such as it is, is high that this month will end with 29 days where the high temperature in Austin has climbed to 100° and higher. When all is said and done July 2022 will be the hottest July ever. Even the hottest high temperature th
  
  Read more

• Lake Travis is 54% full; that's not stopping boaters

  25-07-2022 04:10 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — As drought conditions continue across Central Texas, water levels in Lake Travis continue to drop.So far, that has not impacted business at Austin's Boat Tours."We are fully booked almost every Saturday," said co-owner Angel Edwards.Last year, Lake Travis was about 77% full, but it is down to about 54% full this year. Water levels show the lake is almost 20 feet below its average level."Our marina will be pushed out like a lot of the other marinas," said Austin Edwards, Aus
  
  Read more

• Drought 2022: How it started and how it could end

  25-07-2022 03:55 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) - Around this time last year none of Central Texas was in drought. Fast forward a year and the entire area is in drought with most of us in extreme or exceptional drought, the worst two tiers.If you remember last spring into summer was wetter and cooler than normal. Our lakes were rising without significant and widespread flash flooding.By late July into early August of 2021 we were completely drought free without even any "Abnormal Dryness" setting in.Drought monitor: Late July-Ea
  
  Read more

• 2 children, 3 adults injured in multi-vehicle crash on FM 812

  25-07-2022 03:22 via kxan.com
  
  TRAVIS COUNTY (KXAN) — Two children were taken to a hospital with serious injuries after a multi-vehicle crash Sunday in southeast Travis County.Austin-Travis County EMS said four ambulances were responding to the crash in the 9100 block of FM 812 and Creedmoor Drive. While serious, ATCEMS said the injuries to the children aren't expected to be life-threatening. They were taken to Dell Children's Hospital, and two adults were taken to St. David's South Austin Medical Center with injuries n
  
  Read more

• Illegal dumping site catches fire again in southeast Austin

  25-07-2022 01:20 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — An illegal dumping site in southeast Austin caught fire again Sunday, the Austin Fire Department said.AFD said while the fire is under control, it will have crews monitor the fire overnight. The column of smoke from the 2100 block of Brandt Road, east of Interstate 35 but west of East Slaughter Lane, could be seen from miles away, and viewer Christa Wilke sent us these photos before crews had it knocked down.A large brush fire burned Sunday near in southeast Austin on Brand
  
  Read more

• Check out CapMetro's new Austin FC-themed electric bus

  25-07-2022 00:12 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin FC fans will now be able to hitch a ride with dale pride, following the launch of a verde-themed CapMetro bus last week. The unveiling came as part of CapMetro's groundbreaking ceremony for its upcoming McKalla Station, a new regional rail stop on the east side of Q2 Stadium that's scheduled to open in late 2023.And for Austin FC enthusiasts, the artwork might look familiar. Austin-based artist Fabian Rey created the wrap-around bus design this summer, following the
  
  Read more

Follow @Austin_News_US on Twitter!