Violent crime is rising against seniors and women, and authorities are urging residents to carry a simple new safety device that can thwart even the most vicious of attackers.
It was supposed to be a normal day of shopping for 76-year-old Donna Mason, but instead, her shopping trip took a terrifying turn.
"I was walking to my car, which was parked pretty close to the store" she remembers, "but I had an odd feeling – like I was being watched.”
Her instincts were spot on – she was being watched. And targeted. In the middle of the day, no less.
Right when she was unlocking her car, a man came up behind her and tried to grab her.
"He told me ‘just give me your purse and I won’t hurt you!' and he reached for my purse. I was terrified, but I guess my instincts took over, and I yelled and pulled the pin on my alarm”
"The SafeAlarm immediately went off, with the loudest alarm ever. I mean, it was SUPER LOUD. It must have surprised him, because he stumbled backwards and ran like hell. Then other people who heard the alarm ran over to see what the commotion was.”
Donna was lucky. She was carrying a small personal alarm that might have saved her life. But not everyone is as lucky.
There has been a dramatic increase in attacks, especially against seniors. And as the economy worsens, criminals are getting more and more brazen. Remember, Donna was attacked close to the store, in broad daylight.
"The trend is both clear and troubling – violent crime is rising, especially against our most vulnerable citizens, like seniors. Authorities recommend that everyone carry a small personal alarm that can draw attention and scare attackers"
Donna had been given a SafeAlarm by her daughter about a month before. She carried it on her purse, but didn’t think she’d ever need to use it.
“Since my daughter bought it for me, I figured I’d carry it, even though I never thought I’d need it. I am so thankful I had this little alarm. I’m 76, and have never been a crime victim, so when it happens to you, it’s almost a feeling of disbelief.”
"After my attack, I bought 6 SafeAlarms for my friends at the senior center. Because now I know how easy you can be targeted, even in a crowded parking lot in daytime” .
What Is A SafeAlarm?
Imagine a tiny alarm that’s super simple to use, and has the loudest sound ever. That’s the SafeAlarm.
It’s a personal alarm that has a piercing 120db sound, and is activated simply by pulling a pin. It scares attackers and attracts volumes of attention.
By the way, how loud is 120DB? It’s like a military jet taking off. LOUD.
The design is really good too. Instead of a button that can accidentally be pressed, SafeAlarm uses a pull-pin. So it’s easy to use, but won’t go off by accident. And once it’s pulled, it immediately emits its 120db siren, and will continue to shriek for 30 minutes, or until the pin is put back.
SafeAlarm Was Born From Tragedy
Mark Adams, the inventor of SafeAlarm, says the idea for the product came after hearing about a recent attempted kidnapping in his hometown of San Diego.
“I was watching the news, and saw where a child was almost kidnapped in a Costco parking lot, during the middle of the day” said Adams.
“Fortunately, this particular kidnapping failed because the father was alert and made a big commotion. But it really hit home for me because it was right down the road, and my own daughter is 13 and is just starting to hang out with friends without adults being around. I could not imagine how I would feel if she was kidnapped.”
He couldn’t get the story out of his mind, so he did some research. He found that thousands of children go missing every year, many of which are never found again.
But he also found that noise is the #1 deterrent to attempted kidnappings and violent crime.
"Authorities say successful kidnappings happen when they can keep the victim from making noise, which is easy to do if someone strong covers their mouth. So making noise some other way is crucial to someone’s safety.”
Mark knew what he wanted. “I had two goals - to make a small device that was easy to use, and to make it as loud as possible.”
The best part about SafeAlarm is it can be carried and used by anyone, and is useful in almost any dangerous situation.
Mark explains "Obviously, it’s great for parents to give to their kids to prevent strangers from harming or even abducting them. But it’s also great for women, seniors… anyone. Hey, I carry one myself now.”
Mark has been thanked by people who have used SafeAlarm to prevent a tragedy. “I like hearing that” he says, “but I also wish I came up with this earlier. Maybe some of these missing kids that I read about wouldn’t be missing.”