AUSTIN, Texas — If you drive downtown to Sixth Street, you'll notice there are multiple business boarded up.
The boards went up just a day after Austin's stay-home order went into effect.
The Austin Police Department said in its recent operational changes, there has been no change to APD’s response to the most serious calls for service, where life or property are at immediate risk.
The Greater Austin Crime Commission spoke to KVUE on Friday regarding public safety during the coronavirus pandemic.
"I think that anybody – and this goes for personal property as well as business property – [should] take the normal precautions," said Cary Roberts, the executive director of the Greater Austin Crime Commission. “There is a concern that the longer this goes on, we know that in times where you have additional economic stress that you frequently see an uptick in crimes, so we’re in the early part of this now. You know, we’re obviously monitoring it closely. Our public safety agencies are doing a fantastic job.”
Roberts said everyone should be taking the normal precautions like making sure windows and doors are locked, having alarms and security activated and monitored, ensure the businesses have adequate lighting and call 911 to report any suspicious activity.
"We’re going to watch closely as this goes on to see how it affects those factors related to criminal activity," said Roberts.
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