Fire Destroys Vacant Motel Near UT Austin Campus
A significant 5-alarm fire tore through an abandoned motel and restaurant along Interstate 35 near Dean Keaton Street in central Austin Sunday, prompting a major response from the Austin Fire Department.
THIS MORNING’S AFTERMATH
Incident Details
The blaze reportedly erupted at the abandoned Aster’s Ethiopian Restaurant which then spread to the former Rodeway Inn motel. The property sits in close proximity to both St. David’s Medical Center and the University of Texas campus.
Firefighters responded to the scene and worked to bring the flames under control within approximately 40 minutes. Both the motel and adjacent restaurant had been vacant and abandoned prior to the fire.
From The Texas Horn:
A total of 62 firefighters responded to the fire. All three buildings involved in the fire had been abandoned for at least a month. At a press conference, Austin Fire Division Chief Eddie Martinez stated that both the motel and restaurant had flames visible inside every window and doorway by the time authorities arrived.
Response and Injuries
During the firefighting operation, one firefighter sustained heat-related injuries.
The fire caused substantial damage to the structures, with flames consuming much of the vacant property visible from the busy interstate corridor.
Austin Energy shut off power to the neighborhood due to power lines arcing and burning.
Investigation
The cause of the fire remains under investigation by authorities. Austin Fire Department officials have not released any preliminary findings about what may have sparked the blaze.
The firefighters’ union took to X Sunday after the incident.
The incident highlights ongoing concerns about vacant and abandoned properties in the Austin area, which can pose fire hazards and other safety risks to surrounding neighborhoods.
Ironically, it’s National Fire Prevention Week.
Thursday, the Austin City Council will vote on whether it will allow the city’s Homeless Strategy Office to purchase a property in southeast Austin that could eventually serve as the city’s new housing navigation center.
PODCAST
For years, Austin City Council has tried to regulate short-term rentals and it looks like finally, there is a solution.
Plus, a contract for homelessness services is up in the air and there’s a not-in-my-backyard fight over where to put a new navigation center….while the city is rushing to keep some 28,000 naturally-occurring affordable housing units from being sold by 2030.
Austin City Council has been busy lately — and City Cast Austin contributor Amy Stansbury, editor-in-chief of the Austin Common, joins host Nikki DaVaughn to get into it all.
And, are you registered to vote? Today’s the deadline to do so if you want to participate in the November 4 tax rate election, known as Proposition Q.
Austin Police’s SWAT team responded to a barricade incident early Sunday morning north of the city. A woman was allegedly being held against her will at a home on Faylin Drive, just east of I-35.
Two people were killed and several others injured Saturday evening in a multi-vehicle crash at the intersection of the U.S. Highway 290 East and Texas 95 South in Elgin, according to the Elgin Police Department.
Authorities were called at 6:53 p.m. Oct. 4 to a T-bone collision that resulted in a multi-vehicle crash.
Police said it was the city’s second fatal crash of 2025, raising Elgin’s traffic death toll to four. (Elgin Police Department)
A Silver Alert has been canceled after a 68-year-old missing Austin man was found.
Enrique Leon was last seen leaving his residence located in the 1100 block of Mansell Ave in his wife’s vehicle at approximately 5:00 a.m. on Sunday.
Austin ISD administration announced their recommendation to close 13 schools across the district, to be merged with existing schools, starting next school year.
The Austin ISD community, parents, teachers and students rallied Sunday against the closures outside the TEA headquarters in downtown Austin.
Elementary school closures: Barrington ES, Becker ES, Bryker Woods ES, Dawson ES, Maplewood ES, Oak Springs ES, Palm ES, Ridgetop ES, Sunset Valley ES, Widén ES, Winn Montessori ES
Middle school closures: Martin MS, Bedicheck MS
High school program closure: International HS
The massive, top-down redrawing of AISD’s school zone boundaries will affect 98% of schools, going far beyond the facilities slated for closure. This means that as of next school year, a student could be newly zoned for different elementary, middle, and high schools in their own neighborhood.
The first weekend of ACL Music Festival 2025 concluded Sunday night with a headlining performance by The Killers.
Austin-Bergstrom International Airport is warning travelers to arrive early for their flights today as officials expect thousands to depart from the Texas capital after the Austin City Limits Music Festival.
WEATHER
SUNDAY’S HIGH / LOW TEMPERATURES
AUSTIN-BERGSTROM INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
CAMP MABRY
5-DAY FORECAST / AUSTIN, TEXAS
Hurricane experts are warning that a tropical storm may soon form in the Atlantic, while a hurricane will be on the prowl close to Mexico this week. (AccuWeather)
Today is the final day for Texans to register to vote or update their registration ahead of the November election.
A lawsuit may stop the movie. (New York Times)
The federal court hearing that will determine the fate of Texas’ new Republican-favoring congressional map enters its second week today, when the state will begin calling its own witnesses in the case.
Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz:
Democratic Texas Rep. Jasmine Crockett:
Texas Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Austin) talks about the government shutdown and AISD Superintendent Matias Segura weighs in on proposed school closures.
Have brisket and beer with Republican Congressman Craig Goldman. From tariffs to town halls to the oilpatch to political violence, they cover a lot in less than an hour. Will Trump’s style of foreign policy affect Lockheed’s lucrative contracts? And why Fort Worth is known as the Panther City.
Democrat Andrew White, of Houston, is hoping like father, like son. White is running to unseat Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who’s hoping to be reelected for a fourth term.
The Brazoria County Sheriff’s Office says a mother is in custody after two of her four children were shot and killed early Saturday. Two other children were shot, but survived.
Meanwhile, nine people were killed in separate violent incidents across Dallas-Fort Worth this weekend. Both the Dallas and Fort Worth police departments are investigating.
SPORTS
MLS: Austin FC clinched a spot in the Audi 2025 MLS Cup Playoffs on Sunday following Vancouver’s victory over San Jose. The Club will make its second-ever appearance in the MLS postseason and is guaranteed to finish with the second-best points total in its five-year history with two matches still remaining in the regular season. (Austin FC)
COLLEGE FOOTBALL: The Texas Longhorns are no longer a ranked team.
After their 29-21 loss at Florida on Saturday, the team, once thought to be a national championship contender, is now in turmoil as they fall to 3-2 overall and begin SEC play at 0-1.
Texas A&M and Texas Tech moved up in the Top 25 poll after weekend victories.
Texas Football CHOMPED in SEC Opener @ Florida | LIVE | 10/6/25
NFL: Big wins for Dallas and Houston in Week 5.
Dak Prescott threw two of his four touchdown passes to Jake Ferguson, Dallas scored on two drives of 90 or more yards in the second quarter with an O-line missing four starters and the Cowboys cruised past the winless New York Jets 37-22 on Sunday. (Yahoo! Sports)
Meanwhile, the Texans won for the first time in Baltimore…and they almost made it look easy.
C.J. Stroud threw for 244 yards and four touchdowns, and Houston scored on all eight offensive possessions when he was in the game as the Texans strolled to a 44-10 win Sunday over a depleted Baltimore team. The 34-point margin matched both the most lopsided road win in Texans’ history and the most lopsided home loss in Ravens’ history. (Yahoo! Sports)
STANDINGS
NFC NORTH
AFC SOUTH
ON THE SCHEDULE
Houston has a bye in Week 6.
MLB: Houston Astros manager Dusty Baker was inducted alongside four others into the Negro Leagues Hall of Fame this weekend, which honors black managerial excellence in the Major Leagues. It is the highest honor the museum bestows on those that have supported the game. The hall, based in Kansas City, is also the epicenter of preserving the history of the Negro Leagues. (San Francisco Giants via MSN)
Once again, KVUE-TV has opened its vault and today we’re going back three decades to the early 1990s when VHS recorders/players were all the rage in home entertainment…long before Netflix and other streaming services came along.
