AUSTIN, Texas — Austin-Travis County EMS (ATCEMS) responded to more than 1,300 911 calls in from Dec. 22-25.
During the three-day time period, ATCEMS responded to 80 environmental incident response calls and 58 cold weather shelter transport calls. Three of the 1,377 total calls were in regard to carbon monoxide exposure.
"It certainly was a busy time," said ATCEMS spokesperson Captain Darren Noak.
This total number of calls comes after individualized reports from Friday through Sunday were released to give the public a general understanding of how many calls there were during the cold snap.
During these series of calls, 58 people and six dogs were transported by single responder units to cold weather shelters and warming centers. Also during this time period, ATCEMS Integrative Services Team moved between 400-500 people experiencing homelessness to warming shelters. The Integrative Services Team was able to do this through the collaboration with Capital Metro and HOST to assist in transportation.
Around 150 people did not want to be transported to shelters. Those that did not want to be transported were checked in on every single day throughout the weekend to verify if anyone had changed their mind. The Integrative Services Team checked in on people at 68 different locations throughout the area.
The Integrative Services Team also provided blankets, coats, clothes, hand warmers and other items to those that needed them during the hard freeze Central Texas experienced.