List Of Dangerous Cities In USA.

Think before applying to Universities in these locations. These are not safe to stay.These are cities listed as dangerous by many World governments for their Citizens. Especially french govt listed many of these cities as dangerous.

Boston:Avoid walking at night in Dorchester, Mattapan and Roxbury, and be wary of“petty crime” in Chinatown, the North End and Fenway.

New York:Be wary in Times Square and at the Statue of Liberty, and don’t go to Harlem, the Bronx or Central Park at night.

Washington:Northeast and Southeast should be avoided, and Union Station is dangerous at night. Don’t go to Anacostia, day or night.

Baltimore:“Considered a dangerous city except downtown.”

Richmond:“Do not visit the city on foot.”

Pittsburgh:The French urge their citizens to avoid Mount Oliver, Hill District, Homewood-Brushton and Hazelwood.

Cleveland:Avoid Cleveland Heights, Lakewood and Euclid. That warning got Cleveland Heights Mayor Edward Kelly upset. “The French government is foolish and doesn’t know what they’re talking about,” he told the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

Detroit:“The center is not recommended after the close of business.” It's dangerous to go out after 6pm.

Chicago:Stay away from the West Side and anywhere south of 59th Street.

Houston:Be vigilant if traveling through Downtown, south and east Houston at night.

St. Louis:Avoid northern area between the airport and the city center, but the airport shuttle is safe.

Atlanta:The French are nervous about the southern part of the city, and downtown after dark.

New Orleans:Northwest of Dauphine Street, northeast of Ursulines Avenue, north of St. Charles Avenue and south of Magazine Street are areas of concern.

Miami:“Canadians have been the victims of crime such as break-ins, assaults and pickpocketing in the Miami area, sometimes during daylight hours,” Canada’s foreign ministry warns. France says attacks on tourists in Florida are rare now, but were frequent a few years ago.Los Angeles:

France warns tourists to take care in Hollywood, Santa Monica, Venice Beach and Long Beach, and to avoid Watts, Inglewood and Florence.

El Paso:The British Foreign Office warns tourists about violence along the border with Mexico, and the border crossing at Ciudad Juarez specifically.

Personally to me, for the first few minutes, it felt a false alarm. Then it felt terrifying and finally calm. Calmness that comes after a storm.

I was attending the lecture of the course ECE 695: Mobile Computing Systems in room EE 005. During the lecture we hear screaming and Prof. stops for around 30 seconds. The screaming stops. Professor continues talking. Less than 30 seconds later, we hear someone shouting, "kneel down". A minute or two pass. Two guys run into the room. Professor asks them, "What is the matter". One of them replies, "There is SWAT team in the corridor. They asked us to come in and stay here". A guy in class asks him, "What is the matter?". He replies, "I don't know. Drug case maybe". Less than two minutes later, there is tornado/fire alarm and we vacate the classroom.

Half of students walk out from "Exit 1" in the figure below. Some are taking "Exit 2". I had totally undermined the situation. Having heard the reply "Drug case maybe", I had accepted it. I thought, "Its cold outside. Let me go and get my jacket from lab EE 51. It will hardly take 30 seconds". This is the most stupid decision of my life till date. Thankfully, it was not fatal. From "Gate 1", I head to my lab. As I open the door and walk two steps, I see three SWAT officers at the end of the corridor. I say to myself, "Shit! Wrong way!" and immediately turn around. Instantaneously I hear one of them shout, "Stop. Stop." I stop. I was asked to lift my hands in air. I did that. Then they asked me to turn around. Did that. All of them are pointing their guns at me. I was scared for a moment. I was hoping I do not get hurt in crossfire. Next they ask me to slowly walk towards them. I realize I am safe. I walk to them. They screen me quickly and ask me to get out of "Exit 3". I did that. Next I

walked to MSEE Atrium. There everyone was talking about the shooting. My friend Purval lives right across EE. I went to his home. He and his flat-mates had just seen a red-handed person being arrested. The first thing I did is call my parents. I told them I am safe. I had the fear that in case cops decide to pull down communication system and mom-dad read the news, they will panic. Next I called my friends and warned them and felt relieved that all are safe. I spent next three to four hours watching news on TV and the EE building from the window right above the TV. As the news dawned that there was only one gunman and the campus is safe, I felt relieved. 

On Wednesday (22nd Jan), escorted by an officer, I went and collected my laptop and jacket from the lab.

I learned a few things, very important from this incident:1. No matter what, never undermine a emergency situation. Never.2. Guns pointed at you does not always mean you are in danger3. Listen to the cops. Just listen to them during panic situations. They are very well trained to handle such events.

The green line shows the path I took after coming out of EE building.

It feels really bad that one of fellow Boilermakers is dead. It hurts more to know that a fellow Boilermaker killed him. May Andrew's soul rest in peace. 

EDIT:I got a couple of messages asking me how I could calm down in less than a day.The answer lies in the fact that if anything goes wrong firstly, the Boliermaker community will be with me. On the night of the shooting, a large number of students came up at the engineering fountain for candle-light vigil to show their support to Andrew and his family.

The second reason for being calm lies in the swift action by the cops. Great respect to them. They responded in less than 1 minute. More than 20 cops were at the building within 3 minutes. Within an hour and half, the building was sanitized twice and all those who had sheltered in-place were rescued. The cops had covered all the area nearby. Thanks to them, I feel safe.

Also as promised, here are a couple of pictures that Purval took from his home. Thanks Purval for letting me share them.

  Updated 27 Jan.Upvote116