The Storefront Safety Council is a volunteer organization formed in 2011. Its stated purpose is to “reduce the number of vehicle-into-building crashes”. The organization claims most of these crashed are preventable accidents that kill or injure Americans as they shop, play, eat or work. Members include experts in both perimeter security and parking, both fields ECI specializes in, as well as other professionals.
Their Website offers standards and articles relating to such topics as vehicle barriers, perimeter security bollards, etc. Various statistics in visual format immediately catch your eye when you visit https://www.storefrontsafety.org/
Did you know? On average there are some 60 such vehicle into building crashes daily. Four thousand people are injured annually and as many as 500 are killed.
Additional statistics available include cause of incidents, type of site as well as age as gathered from 2014-17.
Incident causes range from operator error (30%), through DUI (17%) and ramraids (7%). A ramraid, or ‘crash and grab’, is considered to be a burglary where a car or truck is driven through a store’s front windows to gain access for a looting. Usually the store is not open. Jewelry stores and department stores are prime targets, as well as specialty shops with high value items that are easily fenced.
Vehicles are often used in Europe as an instrument of terror. However, I did not see any separate statistics for terrorist attacks here in the U.S. on the site.
Retail stores (24%) and commercial buildings (23%) top the type of site list. Restaurants, convenience stores, offices and others round out the remainder.
We at ECI agree that most of these accidents are preventable with proper planning and the use of perimeter security bollards and other types of vehicle barriers. We will bring you further details of what we find in exploring this area of concern. Our goal is similar to the council in trying to protect lives and property and prevent these incidents from happening, whether they are accidental or planned.
The photo above shows the aftermath of a ram raid on a Banbury’s (department and furnishings) store in England. Photo © Lewis Clarke (cc-by-sa/2.0)
Read more about Crash Rated Bollards.
Contact ECI at 847.949.0134 to see how we can help evaluate your site and offer a comprehensive, turnkey solution to your challenge of protecting both lives and property. Or click below for direct contact information.
