Austin officials report one death, widespread outages after fast-moving storm

Austin city officials said a fast-moving severe storm that moved through the northern part of the city last night produced intense rain, hail and high winds, caused flash flooding and widespread power outages, and resulted in the death of an adult.

City Manager T.C. Broadnax and department directors briefed reporters at a news conference, saying crews across Austin were conducting damage assessments and restoration work while residents were urged to avoid floodwaters and report hazards.

The storm produced about 2 to 3 inches of rain within roughly 30 minutes in portions of the city and recorded peak wind gusts of about 77 miles per hour, Austin Energy interim General Manager Stewart Riley said. At the peak of the outage incident, roughly 72,500 Austin Energy customers were without power; as of the 10 a.m. assessment reported at the news conference, more than 93% of customers had power and roughly 38,000 customers remained without service.

“We know being without power is incredibly challenging, especially when it could stretch across multiple days, and we will not stop working until everyone is restored,” Riley said. He said crews had identified at least 104 broken poles and that some streets have multiple toppled poles requiring time‑ and labor‑intensive repairs. Riley described a three‑phase restoration plan that prioritizes life‑safety facilities and main circuit lines, then outages affecting the largest number of customers, and finally smaller, more complex outages.

Riley said Austin Energy had requested mutual aid from neighboring utilities and expected more than 200 mutual aid crew members to arrive to assist with repairs and tree trimming. He emphasized safety around downed lines and provided reporting options: text OUT to 287846, visit outagemap.austinenergy.com, or call Austin Energy at (512) 322‑9100.

Jim Redick, director of Austin’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, urged residents to follow flood safety guidance and to prepare for additional storms during severe weather season. “Turn around and do not drown,” Redick said, repeating the city’s longstanding public‑safety warning.

Public‑safety agencies described rescue operations overnight. Austin‑Travis County EMS Chief Robert Lukritz said emergency responders handled a surge of 911 calls and performed multiple water and vehicle rescues; one adult patient who had been submerged for more than 20 minutes was pronounced dead at the scene. “One of those calls resulted in the fatality of an adult patient who was reportedly submerged for over 20 minutes,” Lukritz said. He said other high‑acuity patients were handed over to EMS for further care.

Austin Fire Department Assistant Chief Andre Delareza said crews handled more than 700 calls in the first hours after the storm, many involving downed trees and arcing wires. Delareza warned that some drivers went around barricades and into floodwaters, creating additional rescues. “Please do not drive around barricades,” he said.

Austin Resource Recovery Director Richard McHale said the department was conducting damage assessments and asked residents with small branches, yard trimmings and leaves to place those items in green composting carts for regular collection; the department is waiving its usual 15‑container limit because of the storm. Residents with larger branches should call 311 to request a collection.

John Beachy, interim assistant director with Watershed Protection, said crews were clearing debris from drainage systems and waterways and urged residents not to dump limbs or vegetation into creeks or culverts because that can worsen flooding. He pointed reporters to atxfloods.com for road‑closure information and ATXfloodsafety.com for flood‑safety guidance.

David Gray, the city’s Home Strategy Officer, said outreach teams and community partners had warned and assisted people living outdoors in low‑lying encampments ahead of the storm and that outreach would continue. He said there were no reports that the fatality occurred in a known encampment but that the city was coordinating with police, fire and EMS to determine any outstanding details.

The city also said cooling shelters were open and that the list of shelters is available at austintexas.gov/alerts; the American Red Cross was available to assist, the city said. City officials declined to confirm a tornado report and said they were coordinating with the National Weather Service to verify any tornado findings.

Officials closed the news conference by reiterating safety steps: do not touch downed lines, stay 35 feet away from downed power lines, call 911 for sparking lines, and report damage for insurance purposes. The city said it will continue to provide updates as damage assessments are completed.