On the Fourth of July, we chronicled some of the trouble caused by people shooting off illegal fireworks – and worse – around West Seattle; the clip above is the last one we added to the report, with the sender reporting they caught Alki gunfire in the first few seconds. The Alki Community Council is collecting video, photos, and stories from the holiday mayhem – here’s the message the ACC is circulating:
To all our community:
A lovely Alki 4th of July day turned into a late night of disturbing events. During the day, people enjoyed the beach, promenade, dining, salsa dancing, and other activities. What had been a peaceful celebratory day became something different in the evening.
Residents have shared stories with us regarding people misusing fireworks on the beach, on local streets, and on Alki Playfield. Mortar fireworks, roman candles, and other fireworks were thrown and aimed at buildings, cars, and people. There were several brush fires in the neighborhood, including near buildings, power poles, and electrical boxes, that locals and visitors put out.
We hear you. We understand that people are angry and upset. The violent behavior, which put lives and property at risk, is unacceptable. We believe and stand by the principle that the safety of our residents, businesses, and visitors is fundamental to a livable, thriving community.
We are working with other West Seattle community leaders to focus our efforts on ensuring the City acknowledges our experiences and concerns, and develops solutions.
Here’s what we are currently doing:
=Collecting evidence from residents and visitors – stories, videos, and photos from the 4th of July.
Our President, Charlotte, is requesting videos, photos, and stories (in Word or PDF form) that you are willing to share as documentation. Please upload the documents to (this Dropbox link) and let us know whether you are comfortable sharing your name or would prefer to remain anonymous.You do not need to have an account to upload to Dropbox. We wish to respect privacy and will honor requests to remain anonymous.
*Encouraging residents to write directly to the City Council and the Mayor.
Additionally or instead of Dropbox, write directly to the city council and the Mayor about the evening events. We are only one voice representing the community. More people writing directly to City leaders will get us more attention.
You can email your story with a photo or video to:
council@seattle.gov (goes to all City Councilmembers)
info@wilsonforseattle.com (Mayor Wilson),
and cc us at hello@alkicommunitycouncil.org.
*Requesting an immediate meeting with City leaders.
Our President, Charlotte, has spoken with Seattle City Councilmember Rob Saka about the evening chaos and has requested an immediate meeting. Rob Saka will help coordinate a meeting with other West Seattle leaders, the Mayor’s Office and Chief of Police Barnes, as soon as possible. …
The ACC message notes a town-hall-style meeting could be an option but would take longer to arrange. See the entire message on the ACC site here. Fireworks have been a problem for years – here’s a story from our archives in 2019, different councilmember, different mayor, different police chief, ultimately the same night of mayhem, although some readers have said this year seemed worse than ever.
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