Safety 1622 results

An alert just in from Seattle City Light, warning about telephone scammers who are surfacing again:Read More

Door-to-door concerns update: Comcast response

After our post last night about an alleged Comcast employee turning up at WSB HQ at 7 pm, we promised to follow up with Comcast. We got help from a Comcast communications manager we’ve actually met, Alki resident Shauna Causey, who sent this:

Safety and security are extremely important to us especially in WS where Larry Carpenter recently ran into some questionable folks at his door.

We have 3,200 Comcast employees in Washington State so Comcast employees are in West Seattle on a daily basis. Since I donâ€™t have a name, I canâ€™t speak for the employee that you met, although there are several simple guidelines our neighbors can use to recognize legitimate Comcast workers. Keep in mind that many of these guidelines are also useful for identifying employees of other companies that have reason to work inside or outside a home, such as the power company, gas company or other phone company.

Comcast requires that all employees and contract employees wear ID badges at all times. No employee or contract employee is allowed to work inside or outside a customers’ home without an official company ID badge, which will include a photo ID and company logo. Customers can ask to see a Comcast representative’s ID badge. Comcast employees also have clearly visible uniforms, including shirts, hats and vests all of which have the Comcast logo.

All vehicles driven by employees and contract employees are clearly marked with Comcast logos and identification. A Comcast contractor’s van will say: Comcast Authorized Contractor.

Comcast will not ask to work in your home without your prior knowledge. If a customer is unsure of work that is to be performed inside or outside their home, they should call 1-800-COMCAST to verify the work.

If a customer is unsure or uncomfortable, remember there is always the option to ask the person to leave. All Comcast employees and contract employees know that they are to leave the premises when instructed to do so by the resident. Our employees know that legitimate appointments can always be rescheduled.

If you have feedback, questions or concerns, we want to know about them. You can email We_Can_Help@cable.comcast.com or feel free to e-mail me directly at Shauna_Causey@cable.comcast.com. Weâ€™re always looking to improve our customer service and we would love to hear your feedback.

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And another eyebrow-raising pitch

May 5, 2008 10:17 pm

| 3 COMMENTS

| Arbor Heights | Safety

Not to harp too long on a theme, but this one just hit the inbox and seemed sharable:

There seems to be a theme going around with suspicious door-to-door sales people but just wanted to make another mention of Icon Security. At about 7:30 or so we had a young woman come to the door saying that she was from Icon. My husband answered the door and she asked it he was the “man of the house.” He said that he was and she then looked him over and said “you’re looking really good, I hope that your wife isn’t here.” He was rather taken aback especially considering he was wearing flannel pants and ratty old T-shirt. She then started asking about our security system and if it was wireless saying that they could offer us a better deal. He told her we were happy with our service and started closing the door and she left. I remembered that Icon has been mentioned on the blog before so I just thought I would say that they were out again. If these people are legitimate they really need to work on their sales pitch, they seem really sleazy. We called the police and reported this. We live in Arbor Heights.

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Also happening now: Be a Master of Disaster, Admiral edition

May 4, 2008 1:04 pm

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| Safety | West Seattle news

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Yesterday Sunrise/Olympic Heights, today – Admiral! Backstory: Continuing through late May, we’re helping local neighborhood leaders get you information that will help you keep your family safe in case of disaster. One big part of this spring’s campaign in West Seattle is the designation of neighborhood gathering spots so that everyone knows where they can go post-disaster to get information and help. This is being done on a very grass-roots level, and not all areas of West Seattle are set up yet, but those that are (marked with clickable icons on the map you see above) have been having drop-in events where neighbors can come by, meet the folks working on this, and get important info on simple steps they can take to be prepared. The next such event is happening right now at Hiawatha Park (click the spot on the map in the Admiral District). If that’s the spot closest to you, take a few minutes and stop by, sometime before 5 pm.

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Speaking of disaster preparedness …

May 3, 2008 1:58 pm

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| Safety

The WSB “More” page — automated roundups of the latest citywide/regional media reports mentioning West Seattle and related topics, plus the latest CL listings for WS — has links to two South Sound articles on the disaster exercise under way right now, simulating various Seattle scenarios (they’re in the “More” roundup because they mention the Alaskan Way Viaduct).

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Happening now: Be a “Master of Disaster” @ Hughes

May 3, 2008 1:01 pm

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| Neighborhoods | Safety | West Seattle news

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Continuing through late May, we’re helping local neighborhood leaders get you information that will help you keep your family safe in case of disaster. One big part of this spring’s campaign in West Seattle is the designation of neighborhood gathering spots so that everyone knows where they can go post-disaster to get information and help. This is being done on a very grass-roots level, and not all areas of West Seattle are set up yet, but those that are (marked with clickable icons on the map you see above) have been having drop-in events where neighbors can come by, meet the folks working on this, and get important info on simple steps they can take to be prepared. The next such event is happening right now at Hughes Playground (click the spot on the map near the words “High Point”; street address is 2805 Holden). If that’s the spot closest to you, take a few minutes and stop by; look for them on the north side, near the restrooms, till 4 pm.

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Why did the chicken cross the road @ the new crosswalk?

May 2, 2008 2:41 pm

| 2 COMMENTS

| High Point | Safety | West Seattle schools | West Seattle video

No punchy answer, just the facts: The Feet First chicken greeted the Fast Feet Fridays walking-to-school contingent — including a guest appearance by West Seattle’s school board member Steve Sundquist (he’s in the blue jacket telling the chicken “good morning”) — at 34th/Morgan in High Point, where the long-sought crosswalk was just painted two days ago. (Also in the video, you see Leah the crossing guard, who was nearly hit by a car while we were covering this dangerous crossing spot a few months ago.) This is part of Walk to School Month and Feet First’s ongoing Safe Routes to School campaign; it’ll feature special events like this every Friday this month on the route to West Seattle Elementary. This group walked from 31st/Graham; another group started at Hughes Playground at 29th/Holden, and “a Sunrise Heights neighbor” sent us this photo from that site (thanks!):

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Reader report: Another suspicion-stirring solicitor

May 1, 2008 11:42 am

| 21 COMMENTS

| Safety | West Seattle news

From Andrea (here’s a map of the location she mentions):

Around 8:30 p.m. last night a suspicious man knocked on our door claiming to be selling home security. He was from “Icon Security” but after googling the company we discovered it was fake. He asked my husband strange questions such as if he was married and how long we’d lived there. We called the police an hour later after realizing he was a fake, but they said they couldn’t do anything as too much time had passed. The told us to call 911 right away if it happens again. I’d like to know if anyone else has encountered this man. We’re located around 29th and Holden.

In separate e-mail, Andrea’s husband described the solicitor as a “chubby 30-ish white guy.”

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Be a Master of Disaster: More neighborhood check-ins ahead

April 29, 2008 10:16 pm

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| Neighborhoods | Safety | West Seattle news

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Our state’s official Disaster Preparedness Month may have only one more day to go but the West Seattle neighborhood readiness campaign we’ve been telling you about will continue a few more weeks. To refresh your memory, the map above shows the West Seattle locations already designated as neighborhood gathering places for information and help in case of disaster — somewhere you’d be able to go, if the regular lines of communication weren’t working — and it’s important to memorize where your nearest one is, and to make sure your loved ones know too. (Some areas of south West Seattle are still a work in progress.) To help make it easier for you to know your gathering place, and to get info about how to be ready for the unthinkable, each area has set up a time for a drop-in event — Alki, (Alaska) Junction, Morgan Junction, and Pigeon Point have had theirs already; Olympic Heights (1-4 pm Saturday @ Hughes Playground) and Admiral (1-5 pm Sunday @ Hiawatha, new time) are coming up this weekend; the Fairmount event is coming up in 2 1/2 weeks. Click the spots on the map above for exact locations plus event dates, and keep watching here for updates. One more important thing we want to mention again: a checklist of supplies you can purchase right now to have on hand “just in case” – it has helpful specifics, not just the generalized lists you often see. We’ve uploaded it here so you can take a look and print it out for yourself for use in building a kit you can get to if you need it (and if you don’t have MS Word — here’s a PDF version).

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UPDATE: Crime Watch reader report, Admiral home cased

April 29, 2008 6:52 pm

| 24 COMMENTS

| Safety | West Seattle news

ORIGINAL REPORT FIRST, THEN SEE 9:40 PM UPDATE BELOW
This just out of the WSB inbox:

Just to let you know that I think my house just got “cased.”

While I was upstairs rocking out with my headphones on, my dogs went nuts (which would usually happen in response to the doorbell, but I didn’t hear it). I didn’t go downstairs, but I looked out the front deck from the second floor.

About ten minutes later it happened again. This time I saw a white guy climb into a cream and darker tan colored older Monte Carlo type of vehicle parked in front of my neighbor’s house. It was being driven by another white guy. I think they were both wearing bandana-style headgear.

I went downstairs and found a (pizza) flyer on my “no solicitors” porch and, more disturbingly, discovered that a large plywood board (that keeps my dogs blockaded into the back yard) had been moved and not put back in place. To get to this board, someone would have had to walk clear alongside my house–between my neighbor’s house and mine. If they DID come into the back yard they would have seen the open door to the house proper, and that might have made them skedaddle, realizing that someone likely WAS home.

In any case, be on the lookout.

This happened around 5:50 tonight, around 37th and Admiral.

A reminder that the Southwest Precinct has reiterated repeatedly, if you see or hear anything suspicious, don’t hesitate to call 911. 9:40 PM UPDATE: The original e-mailer just sent an update saying it was a definite casing – read on to see why:Read More

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Updates on 2 new West Seattle fire stations

April 25, 2008 3:24 pm

| 1 COMMENT

| Safety | West Seattle news

This P-I story about impending pole-less-ness in new fire stations — including Station 37 on 35th — got us wondering how that project and another one in West Seattle are going. We found this page on the Fire Department website with monthly reports on the fire-station projects citywide; though the newest “status report” is filed as “March 2008,” it’s dated just yesterday. For Station 37, to be built at a new site at 35th/Holden (while the old one, a city landmark, will eventually be sold), the architects are “continu(ing) on construction documents.” For Station 32 in The Junction, the report says its architects (different firm) are continuing on pre-design, and “three alternative site layouts have been prepared for comment.” Another document linked from that same city page says construction on FS 32 is scheduled to start in November ’09, while 37 is scheduled to start this August.

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Be a Master of Disaster: 3 ways to do it this weekend

April 25, 2008 7:30 am

| 10 COMMENTS

| Safety | West Seattle news

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In honor of our state’s Disaster Preparedness Month, throughout April – and continuing for a few weeks into May – we’re helping local community leaders share information geared to help you take steps to ensure your family’s safety in case the unthinkable happens. One big emphasis is the designation of neighborhood gathering spots around West Seattle where residents will be able to go for information and help if the normal lines of communication are down; even if the only preparedness step you take this spring is to know your nearest gathering spot, that’s still progress. With that in mind, we’ve made the map you see above – each marker is clickable and explains that respective location and who it’s for. Two communities, Alki and Morgan Junction, have already had one-day drop-in events for neighbors to visit the gathering spot and get disaster-preparedness info; this weekend, you’ve got the same chance in two more — 8 am-10 am tomorrow at 20th and Andover, during the Pigeon Point neighborhood cleanup, drop by to get info and get acquainted; 10 am-2 pm Sunday at Ercolini Park, Junction-area residents are invited to do the same. ONE MORE THING YOU CAN DO RIGHT NOW, NO MATTER WHERE YOU LIVE: One of the many West Seattleites working on this effort is Cindy Pestka, who has worked a long time to help people with readiness (we borrowed the “Master of Disaster” term from her); she created a checklist of supplies you can purchase right now to have on hand “just in case” – it has helpful specifics, not just the generalized lists you often see. We’ve uploaded it here so you can take a look and print it out for yourself for use in building a kit you can get to if you need it (and if you don’t have MS Word — thanks to Amy F, here’s a PDF version).

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Southwest Precinct follow-up on the “unusual doorknocker”

April 23, 2008 7:24 pm

| 5 COMMENTS

| Neighborhoods | Safety | West Seattle news

As promised, we checked today with the Southwest Precinct re: last night’s hottest topic, the “unusual doorknocker” reported by Larry Carpenter in Alki. Sgt. Jeff Durden, who leads the Community Police Team, says they were working directly with Larry to get more info, and also checking with area military — at this point. Sgt. Durden says, “I doubt this was any kind of military operation. Everyone we have contacted concerning the matter has agreed.” He adds, particularly in the light of the trouble that Larry had reaching somebody at non-emergency police numbers — “Also as said/posted many many times before – call 911. 911 will always answer and this is definitely a situation where we want to get a patrol officer dispatched to investigate.”

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Update: Police-escorted route for “Inconvenient Ride” bikers

April 22, 2008 10:50 am

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| Safety | West Seattle news | West Seattle schools

UPDATED WITH NEW ROUTE SINCE ORIGINAL POST AT 9:49 AM: As mentioned earlier this morning, the Southwest Precinct wanted us to share this so that you will know ahead of time and be able to help contribute to the safety of the “Inconvenient Ride” students and their bicycling escorts, who could number up to 200, as well as their police escorts. This is the route they are to follow after a welcoming celebration at Chief Sealth High School in mid-afternoon, as they then head on to tonight’s Global to Local benefit downtown. The route has changed a little since our first post an hour ago:

Starting approximately 4:15 pm Tuesday:

From Chief Sealth, east on Thistle Street, then north on 16th Avenue, west on Myrtle, and north again on 21st Avenue. We will veer west on Croft Place, then Juneau in order to head north on 26th Avenue, then pass by the Gatewood bus riders at Delridge Community Center. Following a brief hello, we’ll continue on to the Lower West Seattle Bridge.

(From earlier update, the rest of the route will be:
Remain on Bike Trail over West Seattle Low Level Bridge
Cross Spokane St. at 11th Ave SW, continue East on trail to E Marginal Way S
Head North on E Marginal Way S, becomes Alaskan Way S
Continue North on Alaskan Way S to Spring St.
Head East on Spring St., up the hill to 3rd Avenue
Head North on 3rd Avenue to Union St.
Turn W on Union and into Benaroya Loading Dock – North side of Benaroya Hall, entrance is off of Union St.)

We will be riding single file, observing bike safety rules and etiquette, and will be accompanied by a number of expert riders, including some from Cascade Bicycle Club.

1:37 PM P.S.: Thanks to “Que” for sending us the KING5 noon news link.

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Be a Master of Disaster: Earthquake drill this morning

April 22, 2008 5:31 am

| 2 COMMENTS

| Safety

9:45 am today is the time set for a statewide earthquake drill, as part of Disaster Preparedness Month (which West Seattle neighborhood groups are highlighting with a focus on neighborhood readiness): The state has handy info here on how to handle this type of drill for home, office, school.

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Be a Master of Disaster: One must-have item

April 20, 2008 9:00 pm

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| Neighborhoods | Safety | West Seattle news

When we dropped by the Morgan Junction “get to know your neighborhood gathering place in case of catastrophe” table at Thriftway this afternoon, one of the items Cindi Barker (right, with Helen Daniel) showed us really caught our eye, and she says it had many table visitors abuzz too: The Duracell 3-in-1 hand-crank light/radio/charger:

We have a hand-crank light/radio around here somewhere, but the charger is a new and welcome addition — this sort of gizmo would cover you in a true regional catastrophe. Cindi says she found the Duracell 2-pack for $12 at Costco; we’re going to check local hardware stores – also found a variety of similar items online by several different manufacturers. Meantime, next scheduled disaster-prep-info site/time is for Junction-area residents, at Ercolini Park, 10 am-2 pm next Sunday; check this map for the location or for a place/time nearer your home.

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Happening today: Be a Master of Disaster in Morgan Junction

April 20, 2008 7:29 am

| 1 COMMENT

| Neighborhoods | Safety

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This map shows the first seven spots around West Seattle designated as neighborhood gathering places in case disaster strikes and normal lines of communication aren’t working; this is where you would go for information and help. As part of a neighborhood-group-led process for the next month or so, each spot (and a couple more yet to be firmed up) will have a date set when volunteers will set up a table for you to come visit and pick up information to help keep your family safe. The next such event is TODAY, at the designated Morgan Junction gathering place — West Seattle Thriftway — 11 am-4 pm.

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Another Alki parking crunch may worsen, for safety’s sake

April 18, 2008 4:05 pm

| 14 COMMENTS

| Neighborhoods | Safety | Transportation | West Seattle news

People returning home tonight from work to the Alki neighborhood along and around SW Stevens and 59th/60th environs will notice many new markings like that (as well as the word “locate”) on the curbs near driveways and corners, thanks to a city Transportation Department worker who was out there, wielding a can of white spray paint, this morning.

This is a busy parking street about to get busier, with the sign in the photo above heralding a teardown we’ve mentioned before, five units going up in its place, directly across 59th from Alki Elementary/Playground/Playfield. But the city marking project — delineating the areas around driveways/corners that must be kept clear — is the first step toward getting cars out of some illegal spaces on the street, for safety’s sake:Read More

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Official SDOT update on High Point pedestrian update

April 18, 2008 2:56 pm

| 2 COMMENTS

| High Point | Safety | Transportation | West Seattle news

Last night we published a letter on which we were cc’d, from Denise Sharify of High Point’s Neighborhood House, regarding some long-fought-for High Point-area pedestrian-safety improvements that are apparently finally on the way. This afternoon, we got the official details from SDOT communications boss Rick Sheridan and wanted to share that with you too:Read More

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Friday morning one-liners

April 18, 2008 7:04 am

| 5 COMMENTS

| Safety | West Seattle online | West Seattle weather

SNOW? We’ll believe it when we see it, but here’s the forecast discussion.

WEST SEATTLE COMMUNITY GARAGE SALE DAY: 1 more week to sign up! Do it here.

“MASTER OF DISASTER” MAP: Pigeon Point just added. Click on your nearest site here.

TWITTER: Scroll to see the widget we just added to the WSB sidebar for our “feed” (we’re “westseattleblog”); plus, find breaking citywide news here.

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Finally, city action to improve safety @ 34th & Morgan

April 17, 2008 10:06 pm

| 3 COMMENTS

| High Point | Safety | Transportation | West Seattle news | West Seattle politics

34th & Morgan is the High Point intersection – on the way to West Seattle Elementary – where we caught this school-crossing close call on video in January:

Click To Play

Neighborhood leaders and pedestrian-safety advocates have been trying to get that situation improved for a long time; in the story that originally accompanied that clip, we detailed some of their concerns. Then on April 1st, we told you about Denise Sharify, who works in High Point for Neighborhood House, pleading with the City Council’s Pedestrian Safety Committee to take action; we followed up the next day. Now tonight, we just got cc’d on this letter she wrote to them:

Dear Mr. Licata, Ms. Drago, Ms Clark, Mr. Conlin and Mr. Burgess:

I was walking to High Point this afternoon and discovered that Jim Curtin of SDOT was measuring this intersection for a temporary crosswalk. New student crossing signs will also be moved to appropriate locations. Two new signs to restrict parking were installed last week and Leah, the crossing guard reported that it is making a big difference for pedestrians and drivers. In addition, Mr. Curtin informed me that the half traffic light at 35th and Raymond will be changed to a full traffic light which is desperately needed.

I cannot thank you enough for you support and your commitment to making our pedestrians safer in this neighborhood. We will invite you to a celebration after the crosswalk is painted (and when the weather is nice).

Thank you very much,
Denise Sharify

Jim Curtin is the newly reassigned SDOT “community traffic liaison” who was part of the West Seattle Community Safety Partnership briefing we covered two nights ago. (The 35th/Raymond light upgrade is mentioned in that report; that addresses some of the challenges Councilmember Nick Licata witnessed firsthand during a High Point tour with Sharify and others [WSB video coverage here].)

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WS Safety Partnership tonight: Traffic-trouble help on the way

April 15, 2008 11:53 pm

| 5 COMMENTS

| Safety | Transportation | West Seattle news | Westwood

On our way to tonight’s West Seattle Community Safety Partnership meeting at the Southwest Precinct, we spotted that radar-powered speed sign along westbound Morgan, just west of 40th, where people barrel down the hill toward Fauntleroy/California (we only registered 7 mph because we had to slow down for the photo!). This was a timely sighting because most of the WSCSP meeting was about this type of solution to some of West Seattle’s traffic problems — the method the experts refer to as “traffic calming” — here’s some of what’s in store, and where:Read More

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Road worrier? 2 meetings of interest tonight

April 15, 2008 9:54 am

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| Crime | Safety | Transportation | West Seattle news

HOW’S THE CITY SPENDING YOUR MONEY? The Bridging the Gap Citizen Oversight Committee is having its quarterly meeting tonight in West Seattle, 6:30 pm @ Youngstown Arts Center. Read more about the committee and the meeting here. They keep an eye on how the city is spending the money from the BTG levy.

“TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT” QUESTIONS? IDEAS? Luke Korpi, senior engineer with the city Transportation Department, is the guy to ask/tell – and tonight, he’s the guest at the West Seattle Community Safety Partnership monthly meeting, 7 pm, Southwest Precinct meeting room (Delridge & Webster, east of Home Depot). This is also the monthly meeting attended by key police personnel from SWP with briefings on West Seattle crime trends and opportunities for you to tell/ask them about concerns in your neighborhood.

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