Abigail Velez, CBS Austin

21/07/2024

🚨 : President Joe Biden announced, he has dropped out of the 2024 presidential race.

UPDATE: Biden has endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to take his spot as the Democratic nominee.

CBS Austin

19/07/2024

Crazy morning! 😄

But, we survived! TGIF!

19/07/2024

Crazy morning and I ran out of time to finish doing my hair. The good news? Alli and I are matching!

What a hectic morning.🤯
Microsoft outages causing delays here at our news studios and around the globe!
Plus, rain and traffic crashes causing a mess this morning!☔️⚠️
But the show must go on. Abigail, Meteorologist Avery, and I are following the latest updates this morning on CBS Austin

19/07/2024

Just got off the phone with a City of Austin spokesperson about the and here’s what I learned:

‼️Some city entities have been affected by the outage, they didn’t specify which ones but said they’re monitoring the situation

🚨Austin 911 Call Centers have NOT been affected

I also spoke with Dell Seton Medical Center:

💻Some Austin medical facilities have been affected; the biggest problem is they might have trouble accessing patient records

🚨They said they don’t anticipate the outage to affect patient care this morning

CBS Austin

19/07/2024

A global Microsoft issue is causing big chaos for companies and business across the world this morning, including CBS Austin.

Also impacted? Airlines across the world. The FAA issued a ground stop for several major US airlines.

I just spoke with administrators at the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport who tell me, many cancellations and delays are expected this morning.

Read the whole story here:

All flights from some of the United States' biggest airlines including Delta, United and American Airlines were grounded early Friday morning due to a communica

18/07/2024

34th homicide of the year in Austin.

The Austin Police Department responded to a call at around 2AM this morning and found a man with critical injuries inside the Array Apartments in southeast Austin.

He died about 30 minutes later.

APD is still investigating and wasn’t able to tell us what kind of injuries he sustained that led to his death.

We also don’t know his identity— all we know is it was a Hispanic male.

It’s still an active scene this morning— I’m here covering the latest details with CBS Austin Mornings.

15/07/2024

We’re coming off an emotional weekend, as former President Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt in Pennsylvania on Saturday.

Thankfully— he’s recovering and on the mend tonight, as the RNC is underway.

Today, I spoke to political experts and people in the community— on if they think this attempted assassination could persuade voters in November.

The majority of Austinites I spoke with said, absolutely. They said the sympathy votes will be through the roof.

BUT, the political experts said— no way. They said people’s minds have been made up for a long time, and not even this would get them to change it.

Full story here: https://cbsaustin.com/news/local/could-the-attempted-assassination-of-trump-sway-voters-experts-weigh-in #

Now I want to hear from you— what do you think? Let me know in the comments. ⬇️

CBS Austin

📸: Evan Vucci/AP

14/07/2024

13/07/2024

The former president was immediately escorted off the stage after what appeared to be gun shots fired at his rally in Pennsylvania.

13/07/2024

Oh my sweet baby, how you’ve changed our worlds!

It’s Ellie’s 1st Birthday! 🎂

I’ve never been the baby type… never liked being around them or baby-talk— makes me nervous! But a year ago, my first niece was born and that kinda changed! I’m still not the baby type but Ellie is the exception! 💕

Ellie made my sister’s dream come true— being the best mama in the world! Ellie is so lucky to have a mommy like you and parents who love her sooo much! 🌎

Your Tia and Tio Keen love you, little baby bug!

Happy 1st Birthday, Ellen! Sorry the coronavirus made us miss your party— we’ll be at the next one! 😁👍🏽

09/07/2024

Goodnight from Austin, Texas tonight!

We were officially called off Beryl-coverage at about noon today— so we headed back home.

We didn’t meet Beryl, and for that I’m thankful. By now, we’ve seen how destructive he’s been in Texas.

Just a few days ago, CBS Austin chose photojournalist Riley Griffin and I to head to Corpus for hurricane coverage— little did we all know, the storm would completely skirt Corpus. 🤣

But, again, I’m thankful. My mom said God was protecting me— I think he was protecting all of us!

Tonight, I’m praying extra hard for the lives that Beryl has claimed in its’ path, and everyone that is dealing with devastation as a result of the storm. 🙏🏽

Thank you Corpus, for welcoming us with open arms and being one of the friendliest cities I’ve ever been to! I’ll be back soon, hopefully for pleasure and not business!

BTW— leaving Corpus, I fell super ill and I haven’t recovered since. I’m dealing with whatever sickness this is, so you won’t see me on air tomorrow but I’ll be back soon!

Thanks for staying with me these last few days! ♥️

08/07/2024

08/07/2024

08/07/2024

I have nothing to report on here in Corpus Christi— and that’s GOOD NEWS!

That burst of storms we got yesterday afternoon was Beryl— and as of now, that’s all we’ll get from him.

The tropical system DID intensify overnight but it also traveled further northeast of Corpus— sparing our coastal area.

We’re not following any reports of additional storms that should come this way in the next few days.

But, I’m not leaving yet! I still have a full day of work here!

For now, thanks for being kind to me, Corpus; I’m praying for everyone experiencing Beryl’s wrath.

CBS Austin

08/07/2024

🚨BREAKING: One person has been pronounced dead in Harris County as a result of Hurricane Beryl.

This is the first death reported in the U.S./Texas caused by Beryl.

CBS Austin

08/07/2024

Beryl is expected to peak overnight and into the early morning tomorrow.

I’m heading to sleep now but I’ll be on CBS Austin Mornings from 4:30-7AM, showing you the live impacts of the tropical system.

If you’re not in the Austin area, tune into your local stations and you might see me on there as well.

Be safe and see you soon!

Goodnight from Corpus Christi!

08/07/2024

I met Terrance and his lovely wife at Snoopy’s this evening!

Snoopy’s is one of the favorite spots for Corpus Christi locals— it’s on Sunset Island, just a few miles southeast of central Corpus.

Terrance and his wife were having a drink called ”THE HURRICANE,” the price was half-off tonight in honor of Beryl!

Moral of the story: these locals are TOUGH!

In the horizon of Snoopy’s deck— massive clouds were rolling in as Beryl crawled up to Corpus.

I asked people there, “When you look at those clouds, do you get scared?”

Most of them said, “we’ve been through worse!”

My favorite quote of the night? I asked Terrance, what advice do you have for people to prepare for Beryl? He said “board up and have a beer!”

Stay safe— more updates coming soon!

CBS Austin

07/07/2024

BERYL HAS ARRIVED IN CORPUS!

07/07/2024

BERYL HAS ARRIVED IN CORPUS.

At 4PM today, photojournalist Riley Griffin and I stopped for gas and went to the shore off the Gulf Coast to get footage of storms rolling in.

By the time we arrived to shore at 4:10, parked and got out of the car— Beryl arrived.

I was standing outside and the raindrops hitting me felt like mini paintballs because of how strong the winds were.

We’re driving and it’s hard to see the cars in front of us, just 3 feet away.

Beryl was expected to make landfall at 9PM tonight.

CBS Austin

07/07/2024

A quick message from Corpus Christi Mayor, Paulette M. Guajardo on Beryl’s arrival.

Beryl is expected to arrive in just a few hours— even though Corpus is not in the eye of the storm, we will still feel the tropical storm impacts!

You still have time to prepare or evacuate; whatever you do, BE SAFE!

CBS Austin

07/07/2024

John Garcia… a man with a heart of gold.

I stopped by his house after driving by his neighborhood and seeing his boarded up windows.

He used these same wooden planks to protect his house from Hurricane Harvey a few years back.

He’s born and raised in Corpus and said he’s survived many storms and hurricanes so writing mementos on the boards reminds him that he survived, and he’ll do it again!

But check this out…

He also boards up the windows for his neighbors. He said they’re elderly and have no surviving family; no kids or spouses.

John lost his dad when he was 16, but remembers that his dad taught him to be selfless.

So now, before every storm— he boards up his elderly neighbors windows, and once the storm passes, he takes them back down and checks on his neighbors to make sure that they’re okay.

John said he’s blessed to be a blessing.

CBS Austin

07/07/2024

🚨BREAKING: A 3rd suspect has been arrested in connection to the deadly shooting that occurred on June 15 at Old Settlers Park during Round Rock's annual Juneteenth celebration, which resulted in two deaths and 14 injuries.

On Saturday, July 6, Keshawn Dixon, 18, was arrested in Killeen and transported to the Bell County Jail.

He is charged with deadly conduct, a third-degree felony, with the possibility of additional charges.

The investigation is ongoing, and the Round Rock Police Department continues to pursue leads involving additional suspects.

CBS Austin

07/07/2024

Day 1 of our Beryl coverage in Corpus Christi!

If you’re along the Texas coast— you have a few more hours to prepare for this tropical system.

Be careful, be prepared, be aware!

Tomorrow, we’ll be speaking with city officials on their preparations for Beryl.

Let me know if you have specific questions you’d like for me to ask city leaders ahead of Beryl’s arrival!

Goodnight for now, I’ll see you all tomorrow!

CBS Austin

07/07/2024

Good evening from Corpus Christi!

The best way I can describe this (excuse the cliche) is the calm before the storm.

I spent the majority of my time on the ground today talking to people who were going about business as usual.

I met many people who were swimming and fishing off the Gulf Coast and enjoying a “beach day.” Some told me they were afraid of Beryl while others said they don’t expect it to be hectic.

But as we drove into the residential areas near the coast— homeowners and business owners were boarding up their windows. Some of them also said they don’t expect Beryl to hit hard but said they’d “rather be safe than sorry.”

As of this evening, Beryl is moving further northeast of Texas— just hours ago, Corpus was supposed to be in the eye of the storm, and that’s no longer.

As we know, these tropical systems change and move QUICK!

CBS Austin

Video blog of today coming soon!

06/07/2024

And we’re off!

Photojournalist Riley Griffin and I are heading to Corpus Christi this afternoon to cover Hurricane Beryl.

Click here to read about our trip: https://cbsaustin.com/news/local/cbs-austin-crew-heads-to-texas-coast-for-hurricane-coverage

I’ll be posting (many) updates on my social media accounts so let me know if there’s anything specific you’d like for me to share!

Stay safe out there!

CBS Austin

26/06/2024

: Travis County Attorney Delia Garza is rejecting the charges against 79 people who were arrested and charged with criminal trespassing during the April 29 protests at UT Austin.

I was in the lobby with some of the arrestees as they tuned in to the press conference.

I’ll have more on this at 10.

CBS Austin

22/06/2024

🚨BREAKING: A second suspect has been arrested in connection to the Round Rock Juneteenth shooting.

Officials say at 8:30 tonight, a male juvenile was taken into custody and transported to the Williamson County Juvenile Justice Center.

The investigation is ongoing, and the Round Rock Police Department continues to investigate additional suspects.

CBS Austin

22/06/2024

QUESTION: Do you think these questions are self-incriminating?

Some of the students who were asked to answer them say they are.

This is part of the Disciplinary Notice that UT Austin sent to students involved in Palestine protests in April. Students were asked to write responses to these questions, and submit them by June 26th.

The ACLU of Texas is now involved, saying UT may be violating students First Amendment rights.

I’ll have more on this at 10. 📺

CBS Austin

21/06/2024

A candlelight vigil was held this evening to honor the victims of the Round Rock Juneteenth shooting. 🕯️

"Though they died celebrating our freedom, in their departure may we continue to celebrate their lives," said a pastor while praying over the community during the vigil.

Lyndsey Vicknair, 33, and Ara Duke, 52, were fatally shot-- 14 others were injured.

CBS Austin

Full story here: https://cbsaustin.com/news/local/community-honors-round-rock-shooting-victims-with-candlelight-vigil

20/06/2024

BREAKING: Round Rock Police say 17-year-old, Ricky Thompson III, was arrested in connection to the Juneteenth shooting.

He’s charged with assault with a deadly weapon.

Chief Allen Banks says more charges will come, and potentially more arrests can come.

CBS Austin