There’s no question the landscape of downtown Seattle has shifted and that has some employees worried about their safety. In this week’s edition of our video series, “Strong, Safe & True,” we sit down with Scott Kelly, Security Manager for Fred Hutch in Seattle.
Kelly says people coming back to the campus for work have many concerns. They are worried about what it’s going to look like to get on public transportation. Will it be safe? That’s on both the COVID-19 front and on physical safety in general, considering the increased crime in the downtown area.
Adding another layer to that, employees are also fearful if they do find themselves in a potentially dangerous situation, there’s a level of uncertainty that anyone will be available to help. That’s because of the lack of police officers in Seattle and consequently, the longer wait times.
Echoing the same sentiments as most destinations in the downtown area, Fred Hutch has had quite a few more incidents over the past year. Kelly says they’ve upped patrols, escort employees to and from cars and keep watch of known problem areas. Fred Hutch also offers security updates so employees are in the know. However, he offers this appeal to city leaders who continue to cut police resources that used to be available to help deal with persons in crisis. “You have to leverage the concern for individuals in crisis with people who are working to find a cure for cancer and patients who are coming onto this campus who are immunocompromised and who are at great risk.”
See what Kelly has to say in the video and continue to check out PRS’s blogs on our website.
