Page 12 - Pipeline JanFebMar2020

by Ryan Cressman
We’ve talked about this
before, but here’s a reminder of a scenario that happens right here in Lansing, and
we’re trying to prevent it
from happening to you. Imagine you’ve pulled into
the neighborhood QD to run
in and grab something, like a doughnut. You pull up to the store and jump out, leaving your car running and unlocked because after all, you’re only going to be gone for a couple of minutes, right? While you’re deciding between chocolate frosted or jelly filled, a person of opportunity (thief) sees a running, unlocked car, jumps
in and takes off. You end up calling the police and reporting it as stolen. Typically, here in Lansing, it will be found a few days or weeks later, trashed and damaged and will not be something you want to drive your family around in any more. By the way, your insurance probably didn’t fully cover the dollar amount you had in mind. The worst-case scenario here
is that the thief takes your car, and injures or kills someone with it in a crash. You may now face the possibility of criminal or civil charges, because you had left it running with the
keys in it. Either way, that isn’t something any of us want to live with.
Or, suppose you simply left your BWL computer bag in the car while you went were doughnut hunting. You came
12 Pipeline
out and it was gone.
Just FYI, there have been 46 vehicles stolen in the Lansing area over the past 4 weeks, and many, many more items stolen from within unlocked vehicles. You can see all the statistics on the Lansing Police Department website, and search their crime mapping database.
So let's talk about parking. It seems like an innocent topic and isn't a big deal, right? However, consider this... Suppose there is a fire in a critical building and the Lansing Fire Department is responding. Their station is close by, and they should be able to put it out and to save the day. Uh-oh. When they arrive, they can’t get
their trucks close enough to the fire because there are a bunch of vehicles in the way, parked
in a fire lane, or parked where they aren’t supposed to be, like on an end cap. The fire gets out of control and the building is lost. Hopefully, no one got hurt. This tragedy could’ve been prevented if the FD had clear access.
So, what does any of this have to do with BWL Security? These are examples of why the BWL has been concerned about locking our vehicles and securing our property, and about where we park. Practicing security and safety is not always convenient, but we hope you can see how important it is.
SECURITY
PROTECT YOUR ASSETS