When tragedy struck South By Southwest in March, all of Austin was left heartbroken and speechless, and with the amount of people affected in the tragic incident, it could be a very long time before things seem normal again in our capital city.

However, it does appear that Austinites are doing their best to help themselves and others cope in the wake of disaster. According to recent reports, “more than $180,000 in funds” have been raised in an effort to help the victims and families affected by the events on March 13.

At this point, the organizations responsible for raising the money just need to decide how to distribute the funds:

“We’re assessing other needs they may have beyond what Crime Victims’ Compensation will cover or what their own insurance will cover,’ said Kachina Clark, manager of APD Victim Services, in a recent interview with The Daily Texan. ‘We are working with the Austin Community Foundation and the Red Cross because they have experience dealing with large-scale incidents and distribution of funds that are raised’.

With so many people affected by the tragedy—and with injuries ranging from “mild” to “critical”—it is certainly understandable enough that the organizations would have to take some time to decide on how the money will be distributed amongst the victims. The driver responsible for the horrific incident was allegedly “fleeing a patrolman” when he accelerated through the SXSW crowd, killing four and injuring 17. He is currently being charged with murder and 20 new counts of aggravated assault, with each new charge “punishable by up to 99 years in prison”.

Obviously, nobody is ever really prepared for events like these, and when they strike, everyone is left devastated and scrambling to react. The generosity and support that is currently being displayed by Austinites is amazing, though, and we at Freedom Bail Bonds expected nothing less out of the wonderful people in our great city.