Assaults on Seattle Firefighters Skyrocket So High That It May Impact Critical Services
Crime has continued to rise in many of America’s major cities, and first responders are becoming the victims at an alarming rate.
According to KVI radio host Ari Hoffman, Seattle Fire Fighters Union Local 27 President Kenny Stuart wrote a letter to the Seattle City Council detailing the violence firefighters have faced in recent months.
He said Seattle firefighters have been the victims of “more than 40 attacks and assaults” since April 2022, and he detailed some of the most disturbing ones.
EXCLUSIVE: Seattle firefighters have been the victims of over 40 “violent and dangerous” attacks & assaults since April 2022.
According to their union “Due to underreporting, the actual number of assaults is likely much higher”
? pic.twitter.com/4TEVJN5ZRR— Ari Hoffman (@thehoffather) August 5, 2022
“Last Monday, July 18th, a Seattle Fire Fighter working on SFD Engine 10 responding to an encampment fire at 10 Avenue S. and Dearborn St. was hit by a large rock thrown by an assailant while extinguishing the fire,” Stuart wrote.
“This fire fighter will recover from this injury, but it is one more unsettling near-miss in [an] all too dangerous environment.”
Stuart also recounted an incident from June in which firefighters were attacked by a patient they were trying to help.
“On June 3, during an Aid Response, Engine 30 experienced their patient pulling a knife on them. The patient stated that they were going to kill the firefighters and then began chasing them with the knife.
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“They retreated to the engine, and the person climbed on top of the engine before eventually being detained.”
Despite this disturbing attack, Stuart said the alleged attacker was released and was “back on the streets.”
He also said the suspect had “already approached members of this crew and other Seattle Fire Fighters working in the area” since he was released following the first alleged attack.
While 40 is already an unacceptable number of attacks in a matter of months, Stuart said he assumed the total was actually much higher.
“Due to underreporting, the actual number of assaults is likely much higher, because the men and women of our fire department are accustomed to facing and mitigating harmful and deadly hazards,” he wrote.
In addition to putting firefighters themselves at risk, these attackers are also risking the safety of the people who the firefighters are trying to help.
As Stuart explained in his letter, the attacks are affecting both “fire fighter safety and the critical services we provide.” The community at large is at risk because of these attacks, and that is the world the left has created.
According to The Seattle Times, the leftist city initially cut police budgets by 17 percent in 2020 after the death of George Floyd. Since then, crime has soared in Seattle, and over 400 police officers have quit.
By failing to adequately support the police force, leftists in Seattle have created an environment where crime can thrive. As a result, all residents are at risk, including firefighters.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
