On August 1, 1966, Charles Whitman barricaded himself on the twenty-eighth-floor observation deck of the University of Texas’s Main Building and went on a killing spree taking the lives of 16 people and wounding 32 others in a mass shooting rampage in and around the Tower of the University of Texas in Austin. Trained as a sniper in the Marine Corps, Whitman followed the sniper tradition of one shot, one kill and never shot twice anyone who had fallen to the ground. He fired for 20 minutes before law enforcement and armed citizens returned fire. The entire shooting spree lasted for just over 90 minutes. At the time of the shootings, the Austin Police Department had no specialized tactical unit to deploy in response to reports of a sniper. Officers were equipped with revolvers and shotguns, which were ineffective against a sniper; some went home to get their own rifles. In addition, officers had few radios, and the citys phone system was overwhelmed. The shootings subsequently helped cause other departments across America to form SWAT teams. Today, visitors are allowed on the observation deck only with guided tours scheduled by prior appointment, and after being screened by metal detectors.
Posted on: Fri, 01 Aug 2014 12:00:03 +0000
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