National Night Out began in 1984 to promote involvement in crime prevention activities among the police community and neighborhoods. The program intends to inform potential criminals that neighborhoods are organized and supported by local police departments. National Night Out is scheduled for August 7th, 2018.
Across all fifty states millions of neighbors take part in National Night Out usually on the first Tuesday in August. Some states depending on the weather will host the event on the first Tuesday in October. National Night Out encourages neighborhoods to host block parties, parades, cookouts and other community events. These events include visits from emergency personnel promoting safety and increasing awareness on programs such as drug prevention and anti-crime efforts.
When keeping you home safe prevention is the key. Most neighborhood crimes are crimes of opportunity when cars are left unlocked and easy access to your home. Sometimes we take for granted how safe we feel in our homes and neighborhoods by leaving purses in cars, forgetting to turn on alarms or locking windows. You can follow a few tips to help keep your home and neighborhood safe:
- Maintain outdoor landscaping by keeping shrubbery trimmed away from windows.
- Install a security camera and make it a habit to set your alarm, lock windows and doors.
- If you are traveling, have packages delivered to an alternate address, use timers on lamps in your home and post your vacation photos on your way back.
National Night Out Do Something Tips
- Pay attention to your neighbors’ habits as this can help when something does not seem right.
- Work together with your neighbors looking out for suspicious behavior around your neighborhood.
- Create an email group for you and your neighbors to keep accounts of crime trends or sharing safety tips.
- Go outside and be visible by hosting block parties, walking the neighborhood and playing in the front yard to show you potential criminals you live in a tight knit community looking out for one another.
- Have your local police department’s non-emergency line to report questionable or suspicious activities.
- If you come home, noticing doors or windows are open do not go inside and call police from a safe distance.
- Call your neighbor if you see a service vehicle at their home when they are not home or on vacation.