Homer Is 2nd Safest City in Alaska - 2nd Year in a Row

In mid-April, Safewise released their annual findings on Alaska's five safest city's.  For the second consecutive year, Homer ranks as the second safest city in Alaska, behind Sitka.  Palmer, Unalaska and Ketchikan finish out the top five slots. 

Safewise (an independent review and comparison company dedicated to providing consumers with information and educational materials about home security systems and techniques) bases its rankings on the most recent FBI report.

According to Safewise, statewide, Alaska's violent crime rate is more than twice the national average of 4.49 incidents per 1,000.  Alaska's five safest cities, however really stand out for their stellar records with an average of only 2.18 violent crimes per 1,000 people.  The five safest cities kept violent crime below the national average, with two cities reporting zero counts of murder. Robbery came in as the second-least common violent crime, with no city seeing more than four incidents.  Homer came in with the lowest rate of violent crimes. 

Of all the crime reported in these cities (and in Alaska overall), most were property crimes.

Homer Police Department's highly trained, professional police force plays a big role in these favorable conditions.  They promote a positive, safe environment by prioritizing community policing techniques in which the Department works with the community to address citizen concerns, to engage and maintain citizen involvement in crime prevention activities, and to employ de-escalating techniques to defuse potentially violent encounters.  

HPD's Project Drive program, their naloxone training (as part of Homer's multi-agency strategy designed to prevent the harms from opioid drug use), and the City's involvement in the Green Dot program are community policing examples that have garnered State-wide acclaim.  

Kudos to the citizens of Homer and the Homer Police Department for helping make Homer one of the safest cities in the State!

The 5 Safest Cities in Alaska

1. Sitka

Population: 8,736
Violent crimes per 1,000: 1.60
Property crimes per 1,000: 18.66

2. Homer

Population: 5,735
Violent crimes per 1,000: 1.92
Property crimes per 1,000: 36.79

3. Palmer

Population: 7,184
Violent crimes per 1,000: 2.78
Property crimes per 1,000: 33.96

4. Unalaska

Population: 4,449
Violent crimes per 1,000: 3.37
Property crimes per 1,000: 6.52

5. Ketchikan

Population: 8,272
Violent crimes per 1,000: 4.13
Property crimes per 1,000: 41.43