Tuesday, March 20, 2018

The Name Is Austin: Beware Texas and Maryland



On March 20, 2018, news concentrated on two fronts tied to the name Austin in Texas and Maryland.

The name Austin is an English name. Austin was developed in the Middle Ages from the Latin Augustine, meaning magic dignity, or venerable

Austin Bombings Continue: FedEx Certainly, Goodwill Maybe


From March 2 through March 18, 2018, four package explosions have occurred in Austin, Texas, resulting in two deaths. (See details here.)

The earlier deaths of two men named House (March 2) and Mason (March 12) were from families who knew each other, and involved in community organizing.

The location of the Dawn Song Drive explosion was near the home of a Latina activist.



From the New York Times: "Eliza May said she was watching a TV show in her home when she heard what sounded like a transformer blowing up in her backyard. 'It sounded like when the transformers go out, but it was five times magnified that,' said Ms. May, who lives about 200 feet from where the explosion was said to have occurred."

Bomb #5


On March 20, during the hour after midnight, a package exploded on a conveyor belt at a FedEx shipping center at Schertz, near San Antonio, Texas. One employee was injured. 

Bomb #6


Hours after the San Antonio blast, police sent a bomb squad to a FedEx facility outside Austin's main airport to check on a suspicious package that was reported shortly before sunrise. Authorities roped off a large area around the shopping center in the enclave of Sunset Valley.

The ATF Houston tweeted that the "two packages located at two separate FedEx facilities in Austin/San Antonio are on 3/20/2018 are connected to the four previous package explosions that occurred between 3/2 and 3/18 in Austin, TX."

Device #7


Around 7:00 pm, an incendiary device exploded, injuring one male, at a Goodwill Store in south Austin, on Brodie Lane, near Slaughter. 

The police appear to be downplaying this incident, and some authorities are saying it was unrelated to the previous bombings.







School Shooting

A gunman who opened fire on students at Great Mills High School in Maryland was killed on Tuesday, March 20, 2018, after engaging an armed school resource officer.



The shooter, Austin Wyatt Rollins, 17, was the only fatality. Police said Rollins used a handgun to shoot a 16-year-old female student, who was identified by family members as Jaelynn Willey. She remains in the ICU with life-threatening, critical injuries. A 14-year-old male was also shot by Rollins or the school resource officer, and is in stable condition.

The school's resource officer, Deputy Blaine Gaskill, was alerted of the shooting, immediately responded, and killed Austin Wyatt Rollins.

Great Mills High School is a comprehensive public high school of 1600+ students in grades 9-12. Great Mills High School was founded in 1929, as one of the original high schools in St. Mary's County, Maryland. It serves students at the confluence of the Potomac River, Patuxent River, and Chesapeake Bay. The ethnic population of the school reflects the community: 51% Caucasian, 40% African American, 5% Asian, 4% Hispanic, 1% other. At Great Mills High School, student athletes are known as the Hornets.



h/t SHunter, SMiles, NVoid


2 comments:

  1. Since it's the Ides of March - I'd beware anyone named Mark Anthony....

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Please tell me everyone else caught your "Fortean" slip!

      Delete