Austin street takeovers highlight persistent problem: Staffing shortages

AUSTIN (KXAN)– Just off of Barbara Jordan Boulevard, Luis and Elida Bonet were leaving a concert at the AISD Performing Arts Center when they stumbled upon a different show on the street.

“Probably five or six different cars just drifting, burning tires,” Luis recalled.

It was a street takeover, one of several that broke out in Austin on Saturday night.


APD: 2 arrested after ‘street takeovers’ late Saturday

“It just kept on going, just kept on going,” Luis said.

The incident prompted a lockdown at Dell Children’s down the street.

“This weekend, an incident in Mueller near Dell Children’s Medical Center resulted in increased traffic in the area and vehicles in the Dell Children’s parking lot. In an abundance of caution, the hospital was locked down. APD and hospital security worked together to ensure the hospital and surrounding areas were safe. The hospital was determined secure. The safety of our staff, patients and their families are our top priority,” a spokesperson for the facility said.

Elida said she waited for about three minutes for 911 to answer her call.

“There was so much smoke. It was scary!” she said.

In a statement Monday, Mayor Kirk Watson said the 911 call center received “four times the normal number of 911 calls” that night, leading to “unacceptably long waits.”

Watson added that he has spoken to the interim city manager and Austin Police Chief about the 911 staffing challenges and hopes “to have at least a temporary solution soon.”

“I’m happy to know that the city is taking the concerns of council seriously and addressing them,” said district 6 city council member Mackenzie Kelly.

Kelly said she also reached out to APD’s emergency communications division on Monday after hearing that another city council member was waiting for 911 for nearly 30 minutes.

The department sent her a report indicating they still have 63 unfilled positions for 911 call-takers and dispatchers. That’s not much progress from the 70 open positions KXAN reported at the end of 2022.

Along with call-takers and dispatchers, the report shows unfilled supervisor and lead positions, for a total of 68 vacancies.

It also indicates what progress it is making toward hiring: Eight people have been hired from January’s recruiting class, with dozens of applicants in upcoming classes this month and next month.

Until then, scary moments on Saturday for those waiting on the line for help.

“You hear all the fireworks, you hear all that, you hear everything that goes in the schools and you’re thinking, ‘Oh no, what is going to happen now?’ And I imagine that went through the mind of a lot of people,” Elida said.

APD patrol staffing

Kelly said while 911 staffing has been a concern for her for many years, solving this problem wouldn’t have prevented “unlawfulness from happening in our community.”

“That’s something that we need a well staffed and well trained police force to be able to address if and when the time happens,” she said.

She said APD still has 259 total vacancies, 230 of them patrol positions.

“We know that officers are being taken out of their roles off of patrol and being put onto patrol. And my biggest concern here is having a catastrophic failure because we’re not able to respond to respond to multiple incidents across the city,” Kelly said.

In its report to Kelly, APD’s emergency communications division also provided its latest response times, indicating that between January 15th and January 31st, officers’ average response time to its most urgent calls was 11 minutes.

Last year, police staffing researchers said an ideal response time would be 6 minutes and 30 seconds.


Research: 108 more APD patrol officers needed to achieve target response time

 

AUSTIN (KXAN)– Just off of Barbara Jordan Boulevard, Luis and Elida Bonet were leaving a concert at the AISD Performing Arts Center when they stumbled upon a different show on the street.

“Probably five or six different cars just drifting, burning tires,” Luis recalled.

It was a street takeover, one of several that broke out in Austin on Saturday night.


APD: 2 arrested after ‘street takeovers’ late Saturday

“It just kept on going, just kept on going,” Luis said.

The incident prompted a lockdown at Dell Children’s down the street.

“This weekend, an incident in Mueller near Dell Children’s Medical Center resulted in increased traffic in the area and vehicles in the Dell Children’s parking lot. In an abundance of caution, the hospital was locked down. APD and hospital security worked together to ensure the hospital and surrounding areas were safe. The hospital was determined secure. The safety of our staff, patients and their families are our top priority,” a spokesperson for the facility said.

Elida said she waited for about three minutes for 911 to answer her call.

“There was so much smoke. It was scary!” she said.

In a statement Monday, Mayor Kirk Watson said the 911 call center received “four times the normal number of 911 calls” that night, leading to “unacceptably long waits.”

Watson added that he has spoken to the interim city manager and Austin Police Chief about the 911 staffing challenges and hopes “to have at least a temporary solution soon.”

“I’m happy to know that the city is taking the concerns of council seriously and addressing them,” said district 6 city council member Mackenzie Kelly.

Kelly said she also reached out to APD’s emergency communications division on Monday after hearing that another city council member was waiting for 911 for nearly 30 minutes.

The department sent her a report indicating they still have 63 unfilled positions for 911 call-takers and dispatchers. That’s not much progress from the 70 open positions KXAN reported at the end of 2022.

Along with call-takers and dispatchers, the report shows unfilled supervisor and lead positions, for a total of 68 vacancies.

It also indicates what progress it is making toward hiring: Eight people have been hired from January’s recruiting class, with dozens of applicants in upcoming classes this month and next month.

Until then, scary moments on Saturday for those waiting on the line for help.

“You hear all the fireworks, you hear all that, you hear everything that goes in the schools and you’re thinking, ‘Oh no, what is going to happen now?’ And I imagine that went through the mind of a lot of people,” Elida said.

APD patrol staffing

Kelly said while 911 staffing has been a concern for her for many years, solving this problem wouldn’t have prevented “unlawfulness from happening in our community.”

“That’s something that we need a well staffed and well trained police force to be able to address if and when the time happens,” she said.

She said APD still has 259 total vacancies, 230 of them patrol positions.

“We know that officers are being taken out of their roles off of patrol and being put onto patrol. And my biggest concern here is having a catastrophic failure because we’re not able to respond to respond to multiple incidents across the city,” Kelly said.

In its report to Kelly, APD’s emergency communications division also provided its latest response times, indicating that between January 15th and January 31st, officers’ average response time to its most urgent calls was 11 minutes.

Last year, police staffing researchers said an ideal response time would be 6 minutes and 30 seconds.


Research: 108 more APD patrol officers needed to achieve target response time

Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.


Best deals of Presidents Day weekend 2023

/ 26 mins ago

We’ll update this page regularly with the hottest deals as Presidents Day weekend is here, so be sure to check back in often so you don’t miss out.


Best indoor compost bins

/ 5 hours ago

Composting is an excellent way to use food scraps in your home and feed your lawn and plants at the same time.


Introduce your kid to the original Winnie-the-Pooh …

/ 5 hours ago

The original Pooh Bear is still around, and you can introduce your kids to the classic character with these toys, Lego sets, stickers, books and more.


View All BestReviews


Top Stories


Salvation Army’s downtown Austin shelter closing


APD: 81-year-old murdered, 23-year-old arrested


Affidavit: Dallas man arrested in ‘street takeover’


‘Potential explosive’ in Kempner garage sale haul


Gulf of Mexico warming 2x faster than global ocean


Top Stories


More Stories


Salvation Army’s downtown Austin shelter closing


APD: 81-year-old murdered, 23-year-old arrested


Affidavit: Dallas man arrested in ‘street takeover’


‘Potential explosive’ in Kempner garage sale haul


Gulf of Mexico warming 2x faster than global ocean


SAPD chief: ‘Street takeovers’ also happening there


Attorneys calling for prosecution of APD officers


Bill aims at banning voting sites from college campuses


More Stories

Austin-Travis County


Salvation Army’s downtown Austin shelter closing

/ 26 mins ago


APD: 81-year-old murdered, 23-year-old arrested

/ 27 mins ago


Affidavit: Dallas man arrested in ‘street takeover’

/ 50 mins ago


Attorneys calling for prosecution of APD officers

/ 4 hours ago


Bill aims at banning voting sites from college campuses

/ 4 hours ago


1 person dead after 3-vehicle wreck in north Austin

/ 4 hours ago


Baby goes home after 139 days in Dell Children’s …

/ 4 hours ago


A look at Rori Harmon’s work ethic on, off the floor

/ 6 hours ago


Proposed study to address affordable student housing

/ 7 hours ago


Increasing temperatures and wind gusts

/ 60 mins ago


UT women’s hoops drop to No. 19 in AP poll

/ 16 hours ago


16 units damaged in NE Austin apartment complex fire

/ 1 min ago


UT men’s hoops drop two in latest AP poll

/ 17 hours ago


UT swim coach ‘worried’ about NIL deals

/ 19 hours ago


Annual ‘Go Red for Women’ luncheon happening Friday

/ 4 hours ago


How immigrant housekeeper achieved ‘American dream’

/ 6 hours ago


How to get to Q2 Stadium for 2023 Austin FC season

/ 22 hours ago


Street takeovers trend in TX cities in recent years

/ 19 hours ago


UT students compete in Jeopardy! reunion tournament

/ 1 day ago


Roof of SE Austin home partially collapses in fire

/ 1 day ago

KXAN Austin Video

<article class="article-list__article article-list__article–is-stacked article-list__article–has-thumb article-list__article–is-media-type" data-article-id="8410182" data-index="0" data-collection="article-list5" data-anvato-params="Tuesday, Feb. 21 morning headlines

5 hours ago

Proposed city study will look at affordable student …

7 hours ago

16 units displaced after large fire at northeast …

8 hours ago

Round Rock Express holding national anthem auditions …

8 hours ago

Pflugerville, Round Rock FDs respond to apartment …

15 hours ago

Could this year be the year that ‘water cremation’ …

18 hours ago

UT, Texas A&M researchers make e-tattoos to show …

18 hours ago

Austin Police looking into several “street takeovers” …

19 hours ago

Austin Police investigating “street takeovers” after …

19 hours ago

TCEQ taking entries for annual art contest for children

20 hours ago

Texas Longhorns supporter, billionaire ‘Red’ McCombs …

20 hours ago


More Videos


BestReviews


Best deals of Presidents Day weekend 2023

/ 26 mins ago


Best indoor compost bins

/ 5 hours ago


Introduce your kid to the original Winnie-the-Pooh …

/ 5 hours ago


Best yoga pants

/ 7 hours ago


Best Sherpa cardigan

/ 7 hours ago


Best heart locket necklace

/ 7 hours ago


More reviews


More from KXAN Austin


SAPD chief: ‘Street takeovers’ also happening there


Attorneys calling for prosecution of APD officers


Bill aims at banning voting sites from college campuses


Apple Watch to monitor TX firefighters’ hearts


1 person dead after 3-vehicle wreck in north Austin


Baby goes home after 139 days in Dell Children’s …


A look at Rori Harmon’s work ethic on, off the floor


Gov. Abbott expands ice storm disaster declaration


More from KXAN Austin




`;

// –>


Tracking the Coronavirus


COVID-19 tracker: Cases in the KXAN viewing area

/ 6 days ago


Data tracker: COVID cases, vaccine rates across Texas

/ 6 days ago


Coronavirus Cases Tracker

Austin Weather

Current

82°

Sunny

Tonight

63°

Mostly Cloudy

Precip: 10&percnt;

Tomorrow

88°

A.M. Clouds to P.M. Sun

Precip: 10&percnt;

Trending Stories


Affidavit: Dallas man arrested in ‘street takeover’


APD: 81-year-old murdered, 23-year-old arrested


Homeowner faces fines after driver hits his house


1 person dead after 3-vehicle wreck in north Austin


APD: 2 arrested in ‘street takeovers’ Saturday

Don’t Miss


How to get to Q2 Stadium for 2023 Austin FC season


RESULTS: This is the best KXAN viewer pic of January


TxDMV rejects vegan license plate for ‘vulgar’ phrase


Cities offer free tree, brush disposals post-storm


KXAN launches new news podcasts



Latest weather conditions from the KXAN First Warning Weather team