Windy Week Brings Multiple False Alarm Calls

With the wind the past week came an increase in alarm calls. In what may appear to be the set of the next Tron movie or Batman Forever 2.0, officers stopped in at the Fun Center to check on a commercial alarm.

Officers are dispatched to alarms by our dispatchers who receive dispatch requests from alarm monitoring companies. Not all home or residential alarm companies offer monitoring services and not everyone that has an alarm is aware that they may have such a service through their alarm provider. Alarm monitoring services generally result in the alarm monitoring company requesting a police and or fire response to residential and commercial alarms upon an alarm being tripped.

Officers are generally unaware if the alarm is a valid alarm or false alarm until they arrive and check the property for signs of forced entry or other suspicious activity.  Some alarms have video monitoring which provides the alarm monitoring company real-time visual of the alarm area which is then relayed to responding officers.

You can help prevent false alarms:

✅ Anyone who has a key to your home or business must know how to operate your security system.

✅ Securely close and lock all protected doors and windows before leaving.

✅ Keep pets, fans, heaters, balloons, curtains, etc. away from motion sensor areas.

✅ Be comfortable with how much time you have to arm and disarm your system and know how to do so quickly.

✅ If a false alarm occurs, enter your disarm code carefully to reset your alarm. Do not leave until you are certain that either your system has reset or your central station calls you and you give your pass or ID code.

✅ Keep in contact with your alarm company periodically if you have any changes to your home or business that would affect the alarm system.

✅ Make sure that your alarm company has the most up to date contact information for you and any other “keyholder” that would be able to respond to the location in the event that police or fire personnel need someone to respond.

✅ If you are having work done to your alarm that may repeatedly trigger a police or fire response, please call our non-emergency number (206)-241-2121 to notify us in advance so that we are not responding to multiple false alarms and so that you are not charged response fees.

When it comes to false alarms, the City of Tukwila charge $0 for the first alarm and $250 for each subsequent alarm that requires a police or fire response.

For more information, please visit our City of Tukwila page with information related to false alarms, fee structure etc. https://www.tukwilawa.gov/false-alarm-fee-increase-notice/