SEATTLE — Seattle firefighters became the victims of a break-in after thieves got into a fire truck and stole several pricy pieces of equipment outside Fred Meyer in Ballard.
The theft happened in the middle of the day, around 11 a.m. Tuesday.
According to the Seattle firefighters’ union, IAFF Local 27, multiple front-line rescue saws and a generator were taken from a fire truck parked near the Ballard Fred Meyer. The equipment is estimated to be worth upwards of $10,000.
KOMO spoke with a representative of IAFF Local 27 who said a vehicle pulled up next to the fire truck and swiped the life-saving equipment, and though some bystanders tried to intervene, the thieves took off.
In June, someone tried to steal a fire engine while firefighters were responding to a fire, and it happened to the same unit again the next day as firefighters were responding to an overdose call downtown.
Neighboring businesses in Ballard said they deal with regular break-ins and were not surprised to hear about the latest theft.
“At this point, it’s so brazen I kind of have to laugh about it,” Michael Marian, who owns a business in Ballard next to Fred Meyer. “What is surprising is that we’re all just kind of letting this happen.”
So far this year in south Ballard, 174 burglaries and 221 thefts have been reported to Seattle police, though neighboring businesses said that number is likely underreported since it happens so often, some have stopped reporting it to police.
“You know, you get used to it, and so it just seems like what normal is now,” Paul Ziegler, who also owns a business nearby, said.
“You can watch it all on camera, you can watch it a thousand times, can’t really do anything about it,” Marian added. “It’s laughable at this point because it’s so brazen and in the middle of the day.”
Multiple businesses KOMO News spoke with in the area had story after story to share about broken windows on their vehicles, vehicles stolen multiple times, and other thefts from their businesses, costing them thousands of dollars.
Ziegler told KOMO News they had a truck stolen from the front of his business twice and stopped a motorcycle theft as it was happening.
“People know they can do whatever, it’s like a free for all, and that isn’t right,” he said.
Despite the thefts costing his business thousands of dollars, Marian said he’ll continue to stick it out in Ballard.
“I love this city, I know it’s going to get better, I believe in it, I want to help,” Marian said, “I want to be part of that growth, I’m not abandoning it, but it is very tempting.”
