Emergency response

We have made significant progress in improving our emergency response. In one of the early successes, both the San Antonio Fire Department and San Antonio Police Department have reduced emergency response times from 9.4 minutes in 2010 to 7.1 minutes in 2013. The crime rate decreased about 11% from 2010 to 2012. And, in 2014 66% of San Antonio citizens surveyed rated their overall feeling of safety as “excellent” or “good.”

Public safety officials, City staff, businesses and residents must continue to collaborate through strong, engaged community neighborhood networks to reduce crime and promote a thriving and law-abiding San Antonio. We need proactive crime prevention programs, responsive enforcement efforts and a high state of disaster readiness to achieve and maintain low levels of crime and a high sense of personal safety.

It will be critically important for San Antonio to maintain our progress with a rapidly expanding population. We can meet this challenge by strategically locating police, fire and emergency medical services in both existing and new growth areas to provide and enhance effective and efficient services and response times. Public safety facilities and services and neighborhood resilience can also be enhanced through efforts such as safety awareness and educational programs, animal control and a focus on other issues impacting neighborhoods.