Empowering Women Through “Danger Awareness” Education & Training
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Defensive Countermeasures
• Change the locks when moving in to a new home or when a tenant moves out.
• If you live alone, have a male friend or relative record your voice message on your answering machine.
• Trim down bushes and trees blocking any doors and windows of your house. Also,
keep the exterior of your home
well lit.
• Equip all doors and windows with good locking devices. All doors that enter your
home should be equipped with
easy to use deadbolts and door jams. Large sliding
doors are particularly vulnerable to being forced open or lifted
off their track,
and should be fitted with a special bolt or pin lock. For best security, keep all
doors and windows
locked.
• Install peepholes in doors without windows that enter and exit your home. If you
have children, install a second
peephole aobut eye high for them. If affordable,
install a video-
through the
peephole or video intercom before opening the door.
• When doors are locked, you should have an easy way to see and communicate with the person on the other side.
• Do not rely on the security provided by most automatic garage doors that don't
have a locking system. Predators
can easily roll up most automatic garage doors.
It's also a good idea to get a motion alarm that sounds a loud
siren when activated
for garages and sheds.
• Install an exterior perimeter alert alarm system around your house, as well as
an interior alarm system. If possible,
have the systems equipped with cameras
and an auto-
-
to get help on the way, to get your weapon,
or get to a safe room.
-
an auto dialer, it could dispatch help
to tyour home right away. It can also provide you with an early warning
that
your home has been compromised and gives you a better chance to protect your family,
escape, hide, or
fight back.
** Regardless of the type of system you choose, it should, at the very least,
make a very loud sound that can
be heard by neighbors or passers by.
**
• Build or designate a safe room in your house, equipped with a door jam, a cell
phone charger, and emergency
numbers including police and fire, as well as trusted
neighbors and friends that live nearby. Your first call in an
emergency should
be to 9-
the main control system for external and internal alrm sirens accessible
in your safe room so you can activate
them in an emergency.
• Have emergency phone numbers to police, fire, and poison control by every phone in the house.
• Get good quality smoke and fire detectors and position them on every level of
your home and work place. Use the
highest performing batteries in your smoke
and fire detectors and change the batteries at least three times a
year.
• Get several good quality carbon monoxide detectors and position them on every
level of your home and work
place. Use the highest performing batteries in your
carbon monoxide detectors and change the batteries at least
three times a year.
• Use timers to turn on your lights, radio, and television. This way, you don't
come home to a dark house. To an
observer, your home will appear occupied.
• Draw window shades and drapes when there is a need to turn on lights inside your
home. Observers outside can
easily see in your home when it is dark outside
and there are lights on inside.
• Get a dog. It doesn't necessarily have to be an attack dog, but one that barks and alerts you to trouble.
• Avoid putting your name on your mailbox or home. For women living alone, don't
publish your first name in the
phone book or online. Instead, use initials or
a ficticious name commonly associated with a male.
• Avoid putting your name on your mailbox or home. For women living alone, don't
publish your first name in the
phone book or online. Instead, use initials or
a ficticious name commonly associated with a male.
• Never announce that you are home alone. Don't allow anyone that you are unfamiliar
with into your home. If you
have called for a repairman, ask the company how
he can be identified. When the repairman arrives at your door,
have him slip
identification under the door for you to check.
• If you order a food delivery, have the exact amount for the purchase ready and
complete the transaction on the
porch or in the hallway.
• When arriving at or leaving your home, work place, or vehicle, always have the
key you'll be using next ready to
go.
• If you return home and find doors and windows have been tampered with, do not
enter! Instead, go to a
neighbor's and call the police.
• Never give directions to your home to a stranger or in the presence of a stranger.
• Never give any other key than the ignition key when having your car serviced or
valet parked. Also, lock your t
trunk and glove box and remove any valuables
or papers with your name, address or any other private information
on them.
Home invasions are carried out mostly at night and on weekends when there is a greater chance that the occupants will be at home. Women living alone, senior citizens and business owners that are known to carry home money or valuables are prime targets for this kind of crime. The more sinister criminals target people based on their looks and are considered more dangerous because they are after much more than just valuables.
The best defense against home burglaries or invasions is education, planning, and implementation. Listed below are basic home safety tips to better protect and prepare yourself for this danger.
