Many of our friends and neighbors had a front row seat to the chase and shooting at Fifth Street and Naval Avenue Friday. We have friends who live nearby as well as friends who were law enforcement officers involved in the chase and finding of the deceased suspect.

It is one thing to watch this kind of thing on TV. It is quite another to be watching it all go down out your front room window. In the 12 years that our family has lived in Bremerton, we have had the Bremerton Police Department officers along with their police dogs combing up and down our street and crossing though our property many times looking for someone who was attempting to flee the scene or elude capture.

In many ways this sort of activity has brought us closer together as a neighborhood. It spurred us to get to know each other better and has provided the means in which to contact everyone if there is a problem in the area. We have met, discussed and shared what to do during these situations.

Some of our recommended actions are to get all family members into the house, lock the doors, close the drapes, call the surrounding neighbors to warn them and have the phone ready to call 911 if we see anything or anyone suspicious on or around our property.

Having to deal with these types of situations does not make us feel unsafe or uncomfortable living where we do. Many of us chose to live in this particular area of Bremerton. In fact, being prepared, having a plan and looking out for each other makes sure that we never add to the problem at hand by getting in the way or becoming a distraction to the working law enforcement.

Do you have a plan in your neighborhood? Simply because something like this has not happened where you live does not mean it can’t happen. Let the situation Dec. 10 be a reminder to get to know your neighbors and area. Have a plan in place. Stick with it. Don’t make a bad situation worse.