BELL COUNTY, Texas (KXXV) — At 11:20 a.m. Thursday, a juvenile supervision officer at the Bell County Juvenile Detention Center observed two individuals observing a fence and escaping from the facility.

Killeen police, the Bell County Sheriff’s Office and the Texas Department of Public Safety quickly gathered all the tools, and by 2 p.m. the two juveniles were back in custody.

“This is an unfortunate event, but based on our preliminary investigation, it appears our staff followed protocol appropriately,” said Dawn Owens, county juvenile probation manager.

“We are extremely grateful for the rapid response of our partner agencies in locating and apprehending the two youths.”

After the two juveniles escaped, an officer immediately radioed the incident and detention center staff quickly alerted KPD.

A perimeter was established around the facility, a DPS helicopter was dispatched and K-9 units were deployed to assist in the search.

“As with any critical incident, we will conduct a thorough review of this event in the coming days to evaluate our response and training procedures to ensure the safety of our staff and residents in the future.” Owens said.

Bell County Juvenile Services reported the incident to the Texas Department of Juvenile Justice (TJJD) early this afternoon, as required.