Two DUIs on the same block, 25 minutes apart
Good evening, Bellingham!
With 10 arrests and 27 incidents reported, Wednesday made for an activity outlier. Amongst those arrested were two separate DUIs within 25 minutes of each other, both on the 1100 block of Railroad Ave; An unusual coincidence amongst an otherwise quiet day.
At a Glance
Activity was spread thin across the day with no real clustering. The morning saw a handful of trespass and trouble calls downtown, the afternoon brought a burglary report on Lakeway Dr in Puget, and the late evening saw the back-to-back DUI arrests. Only one violent incident was logged, a behavioral health call on South Hill.
Meridian had a busier afternoon than usual with three incidents between 2 PM and 6 PM, including a shoplifting arrest at Bakerview and a theft at Bellis Fair. Downtown stayed relatively calm by its standards, with just five incidents total.
Category Breakdown
Vehicular incidents are up 74% week-over-week, driven largely by traffic enforcement. Six of Wednesday’s 27 incidents were vehicular, including five arrests. Narcotics have dropped 72% from the prior week, a sharp reversal from the elevated activity we saw earlier this month. Malicious mischief led the day's categories with seven reports, which is still below the recent weekly average.
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Timeline Analysis
Intel Briefs
Vehicular Incidents Running Hot This Week
Vehicular incidents are up 74% compared to last week, with 33 incidents in the past seven days versus 19 the week before. If you're parking at Bellis Fair or the Lakeway commercial lots, extra vigilance on securing valuables makes sense through the weekend.
Quiet Streak May Not Hold Through Weekend
Activity has been below average for four consecutive days, and this week is tracking 42% below last week through Wednesday. Historically, midweek lulls don't predict weekend volume. Saturday is typically the quietest day, but the current pace is unusually slow even by that standard.
Narcotics Incidents Have Fallen Sharply Since Last Week
Narcotics incidents dropped 72% week-over-week, from 18 to just 5 in the past seven days. This could reflect enforcement patterns or reporting shifts rather than actual activity changes. Worth watching whether this rebounds or represents a sustained dip.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's in the "Other" category?
The "Other" category includes 5 incidents that don't fit into our main categories. Here's the breakdown:
Where does this data come from?
All incident data is sourced directly from the official Bellingham Police Department Daily Activity Log. We aggregate and analyze this public information to provide community insights. Our data is updated daily and reflects only what the department publicly reports.