Getting to study in Washington is a big deal, especially for students from far away or for international students. However, in the case of Washington, the name does precede its reputation, as most people don’t know how dangerous it can be.
According to a professional Washington state personal injury lawyer, there are over 85 thousand car accidents a year throughout the state. As such, it goes without saying that students going there for the first time in their lives have to know which areas/places to avoid.
Regardless of the college or university that you study at, here are the areas that you should avoid when exploring the state of Washington!
Fife
Reportedly, 1 out of 15 residents of Fife are victims of vehicle theft, burglary, and petty/common theft. The area comes with the statistics of almost 10 violent crimes per 1000 residents and with an astonishing 70 property crimes per 1000 residents.
Due to the city’s size, there’s actually no safe zone within it. It doesn’t matter where you are – the chances that you will get robbed are quite high.
Tukwila
Almost 200 people out of 1000 are likely to experience property crime in Tukwila. This makes this area very dangerous when it comes to finding a place to rent, to work, or to retreat to at the end of the week. In other words, 1 out of 6 people risks being subject to a home invasion/property crime.
The violent crime rate is identical to the one in Fife.
Spokane
Students that explore the idea of opening a commerce-centric business will likely visit Spokane. The city is one of Washington’s commerce hubs and, at the same time, is one of the state’s crime hubs as well.
Spokane boasts a total of almost 250 crimes per square mile – usually 15k crimes reported per year. According to statistics, one in 146 residents experiences crime in this city.
Seattle
Violent crime and property crime rates are rather low in Seattle when compared to the previous entries. However, the total number of crimes reported is still more than just worrisome. Namely, the city of Seattle sees roughly 40k crimes reported in a year.
On top of that, short-term data for robberies and thefts also shows that the city sees roughly 30k thefts in a less-than-6-month period.
Lakewood
This is probably the safest among the most dangerous places in Washington. Or, that’s what the untrained eye would say! With under 8 violent crimes per 1000 people, under 40 property crimes per 1000 people, and a total of only 2800 reported crimes, one would think that Lakewood is the best place to visit.
However, the low population skews the data and means that in actual fact, 1 in 26 people experience property crime, and 1 in 131 people are subject to violent crime in Lakewood.
The Bottom Line
As a student in a foreign country/state, it is best if you stay within the limits of your university’s city. If you have a group, it might be safe to explore the surroundings, but you can never be too sure.
If you do decide to visit some of the dangerous areas above, make sure you travel only during the day and pick your hotel/place to stay in very carefully!
