Tragedy in Austin at the annual
SXSW Festival:
Two people were killed and 23 wounded early Thursday morning after an allegedly drunken driver sped the wrong way on East 9th Street, continued around a barricade set up to restrict traffic during SXSW and then plowed through a crowd of pedestrians on Red River St.
The tragedy that played out on Red River St., just outside the Mohawk and during the first full day of the SXSW Music conference, stunned fest goers who were ushered away from the area by public safety officials who quickly shut down Red River St. from East 9th to East 12th Sts. just after 12:30 am Thursday. The intersection at East 10th St. was littered with debris, the pavement in places striped with blood, as first responders worked to treat the wounded. Two people were killed and five are considered critical; the rest have been classified as mild or "walking wounded," Austin Police Chief Art Acevedo told a gaggle of reporters just before 2:30 am.
After leading police on a chase, the driver of the vehicle has been arrested:
The man, whose identity has not yet been released, acted with "reckless and willful disregard for the safety of the people of this city," Acevedo said. The man will be charged with two counts of capital murder – punishable by up to life in prison or the death penalty – and 23 counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, Acevedo said.