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Women - Travel Alone Safely!Ronald Porep, SafetyIssues |
Volume 1 Issue 13December 2002 |
| Try a few safety conscious rules to help avoid becoming a victim of crime while traveling alone. By following some simple rules though, you can avoid becoming a rape victim when traveling alone. | |
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Car Problems One of the most important things you should do to avoid being assaulted when driving is to keep your car in good mechanical shape so you can avoid breakdowns and react quickly by driving away from a bad situation. If you do have a breakdown though, lock yourself in your car and turn on the vehicle's four-way or emergency flashers until a uniformed police officer arrives to help you. |
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Do not get out of your car for a man in plainclothes who shows you a
badge. Many rapists have fake badges made up to make a woman feel safe.
Ask the plainclothes officer to have a marked police car come to where you
are. Police officers understand a person's need to feel reasonably safe.
Do not call for help on a CB radio either. Your call may be answered by
someone who wants to harm you. Instead, have the number of your emergency
car service with you at all times and use your cellular phone to call
them. If you are not a member of such a service, call the police. Most
cellular phone services allow you to just dial 911 for the police but you
should know if your service allows that and have another number for the
police if it does not. If you drive alone in winter, keep emergency items such as a bag of kitty litter or sand, a shovel and a traction mat in your trunk to get you out of trouble quickly. If you have a flat tire, drive slowly into a service station or well lighted public place. You may ruin the tire but you may also save your life. |
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Parking
You should always park in a central and well lighted place preferably where there are attendants on duty or at least people always walking by. Park your car so that you will approach the driver side when you return so you will not be surprised by someone who is crouched by the door. |
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| If you see someone seeming to be lurking near your car walk in a different direction to a public place and then call the police. Give the police a description of your car with plate number and of the person you saw near your car. Police would rather respond to a false alarm than have you hurt. | |
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Have your keys ready in your hand before you open your door. You are very
vulnerable when you are fumbling in your coat pockets or purse for your
keys. Lessen your window of vulnerability by opening your car as quickly
as you can. Look very carefully though in the back seat before entering your car. And, to deter someone from entering your car when you are not there, have a car alarm installed. |
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Have the alarm programmed so it sounds off a few seconds after someone
enters the car unless it is turned off. This will also deter any criminal
from trying to abduct you. Abductions Ramming a car is how many rapists get women out of their cars on the road to abduct them. If your car is rammed from behind, stay in your car with the doors locked and use your cell phone to call police. If you are abducted, you do not want to carry a weapon. Instead, use everyday items such as flashlights, fingernail files, keys pens or screw drivers for protection. If someone makes you drive your car in abduction, drive to attract the attention of the police. Turn off your headlights. Drive as if you are drunk or high. Ram into something. Other Tips
Be safe and you can avoid becoming a victim of a rapist who preys on women traveling alone. |
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