Seattle business owner fears longer 911 response times ahead of possible police officer shortage

Starting this week, the Seattle Police Department is calling on all available sworn personnel from detectives to trainers to respond to emergency calls.

SEATTLE – The Seattle Police and Fire Department are preparing for a potential staff shortage ahead of the deadlines for the vaccination mandate for state officials and Seattle police officers.

Firefighters and police officers who do not provide proof of vaccination or who do not receive a special permit will lose their jobs after October 18.

The full impact of the headcount won’t be revealed until Monday, but both departments have already developed contingency plans.

Maher Youssef, a business owner in Belltown, fears additional staff shortages could delay 911 response times. Youssef’s Pluto Organic Café survived the pandemic despite multiple break-ins, two of which were caught on camera. He estimates he’s called 911 several dozen times in the past few years.

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Youssef said he felt like he was on his own.

“I feel like I’m alone. I have nowhere to get help. I just open the door every day and do not know whether I will get home safely and safely to my family or whether something will happen, ”said Youssef.

While police were responding to both break-ins, Youssef said response times were long. He worries that if the department loses more officers, response times will only get longer.

“The tourists don’t come to the people [are] don’t go out of their house to buy things. It will be like a ghost town, ”Youssef continued.

According to data from the Seattle Police Department (SPD), as of Tuesday, 84% of officers had submitted their vaccine verification information and fewer than 100 employees had requested an exemption. However, 214 employees have still not submitted vaccine verification information or an exemption request.

On October 1st, SPD leader Adrian Diaz sent a letter to the staff, in which he asked the officials to be vaccinated and to submit their vaccine certificate in order to avoid an “interruption of the unit”.

The Seattle Police Officers Guild (SPOG) is one of the few unions that has not yet reached an agreement with the city on the vaccination mandate.

Additionally, the SPD lags behind hospital workers and government employees in vaccination rates, with hospitals reporting a vaccination rate of about 88% nationwide to staff and about 92% of government employees receiving their vaccinations.

In response, both the SPD and the Seattle Fire Department are implementing contingency plans.

The fire brigade cancels, among other things, not absolutely necessary training courses and community events. Starting this week, the SPD calls on all available sworn employees from detective to trainer to respond to emergency calls.

Sgt. Randy Huserik of the SPD said the contingency plan is intended to ensure that the department has enough staff to respond to emergencies.

“This is the purpose of this emergency, so that we have officers who are available to make emergency calls without knowing what our numbers will be on October 18th,” said Huserik. “Our first concern is the priorities to be identified, the ongoing crime and so on, and the availability of staff to respond to these high priority calls first.”

In the meantime, Maher says, he’ll make sure the door to his cafe is locked when he leaves and keep a close eye on his cameras.

“Yeah, they should just get the shot, you know what I’m saying. Your job is not all about money. It is necessary to help the people, ”said Youssef.