AUSTIN, Texas — It happened almost exactly 15 years ago. On a cold morning in Downtown Austin. There were evacuations and workers in hazmat suits, like a scene right out of a disaster movie.
Early in the morning, just before sunrise, something was wrong in the area. By daylight, police shut down 10 blocks of Congress Avenue.
Only emergency workers were allowed within the barricades. Helicopters searched rooftops as workers in hazmat suits scoured the street looking for clues. Odd vehicles with strange equipment rushed about that January morning that plays out like a scene from a disaster movie.
People working in the area were told to evacuate buildings, or weren’t even able to enter because entrances were blocked off.
What was happening? The answer: birds. Sixty dead birds, mostly grackles, had fallen from the sky and landed in the middle of one of Austin’s busiest streets.
Now, looking back, it may seem like much ado about nothing, but at the time many feared a possible chemical attack. Plus, the so-called bird flu epidemic was making people sick in other parts of the world.
But after testing the air and performing bird autopsies in the middle of the street, the "all clear" sounded a few hours later. It would take several weeks before we found out why the birds had died suddenly. According to avian experts, they were weakened by parasites and fell victim to a sudden temperature drop overnight.
The final verdict on the bird deaths? They were due to natural causes. Panic averted.
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