It’s the kind of incident that shakes self-storage owners and their employees to the core. In early February, a man walked into a self-storage facility in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and demanded money. The office manager complied and handed over the cash, but it didn’t matter. After taking the money, the suspect opened fire, striking the manager in the shoulder and chest before fleeing the facility. The manager survived, but the incident served as a sobering reminder that self-storage employees, like workers in any customer-facing industry, can suddenly find themselves in dangerous and unpredictable situations. MSM reached out to the facility for comment but the operator declined.
Another high-profile incident was the tragic 2025 shooting of facility manager Patricia Villa by a disgruntled tenant.
Instinct & Isolation
Unlike many traditional retail environments, self-storage employees are often in isolated situations. Managers may work alone for extended periods, escort customers through long hallways or into units, enforce rules involving late payments or lockouts, and occasionally interact with individuals under stress, under the influence, or in volatile emotional situations.
Insalaco says he is not opposed to individual operators and workers possessing a firearm if they are properly trained and legally permitted to carry. Gibson, on the other hand, doesn’t support firearms in the workplace. But they both agree that regardless of whether someone carries a firearm, situational awareness and de-escalation tactics remain the first line of defense. In fact, Insalaco recommends hiring a private security company to actually train personnel in these areas. “Some of their suggestions may be simple, but a lot of times people don’t think about them,” he explains. “For example, if an employee is escorting someone to a unit, they should walk behind the person and direct them rather than leading them. Having them behind you puts you in a much more vulnerable position.”
Gibson says another area where managers can better protect themselves is by avoiding unnecessary confrontation. She recalls situations where employees aggressively approached tenants over late payments, rule enforcement, or suspicious activity. “I encourage calm, non-confrontational interactions. Sometimes it’s better to just act like you’re doing your rounds and have a spur-of-the-moment conversation rather than specifically going after them. It’s all in the presentation.”
For operators, the balance between customer service and employee safety can be difficult. Some employees are hesitant to tell a customer ‘no’ for fear of retaliation—in the form of bad reviews.
Andy Farmer, vice president of sales with PTI Security Systems, understands this but says employees need to prioritize their safety over customer complaints. “Ask yourself, ‘Is it worth getting hurt or being shot over a review?’ The answer is no. So go ahead, write that bad Google review.”
The risks become even more apparent when employees escort customers around a property. In June, police arrested a suspect accused of assaulting a self-storage manager at a facility in Miami when she took him to see a unit.
Using Today’s Technologies
Rather than reacting to an incident by implementing security measures, Adams says operators need to be proactive, using modern systems that incorporate AI-powered cameras, motion detection, gate sensors, remote monitoring, mobile authentication, and real-time alerts. “Some systems can distinguish between normal activity and potentially suspicious behavior, reducing false alarms while improving response times. IP speakers, like those in our INSOMNIAC SmartEye security system, can even allow operators or monitoring companies to communicate directly with individuals on the property. Suddenly hearing a voice from an unseen source can stop criminals in their tracks.”
Farmer says one of the biggest obstacles to improving facility security is convincing owners to invest in updated technology. He frequently encounters operators who continue relying on decades-old access systems because they still perform their basic function of opening gates and controlling entry. “You can’t rely on a single tool,” he explains, noting that older generation facilities may put up a perimeter fence or install a keypad and call it a day. “Security needs to be like an onion, with multiple layers.”
Continues Farmer, “Another aspect of security that gives some operators pause is recurring subscription fees or upgrade costs, but the investment is relatively small compared to the benefits.” He says cloud-based access-control platforms, including PTI’s StorLogix, not only offer increased automation and an uplift in tenant experience but also enhance the facility's overall security. “Operators can easily review site activity and access areas while monitoring zones and alarms from one dashboard, often at a cost of pennies when licensing is scaled across all units within a facility over the duration of the year,” he says. “By making the upgrade, you can lower operating expenses and heighten security. That’s a win-win.”
Adams agrees that at first it may seem demanding or expensive for legacy facilities, of which the U.S. has many. “Our country certainly led the way in self-storage, but that’s left us with lots of outdated properties. Many international markets are ahead technologically because their facilities were built more recently and are less burdened by aging infrastructure; so, it’s time to modernize. Even an inexpensive smart sensor can let you know immediately if a gate doesn’t close on Friday night rather than discovering it on Monday morning.”
One challenge with protecting self-storage employees is that they’re very mobile, so a traditional panic button, for example, doesn’t suit them. However, there are alternatives. “There are discreet wearable panic buttons,” Insalaco explains. “That way, whether behind the counter or out on property, an employee can always be connected. With phone-based solutions, the screen may be locked or you’re fumbling with the keypad trying to find the app, and by then it’s too late.”
Sleighel understands the importance of giving employees a simple way to get help when they may not be able to physically access their phone. That’s why SAFEhugg uses discreet voice activation technology. “If a manager is walking the property and finds themselves in an uncomfortable or potentially dangerous situation, they can simply say their chosen safe word to activate SAFEhugg,” explains Sleighel. “The phone screen stays dark while the app works in the background, notifying emergency contacts and sharing the user’s location. It also begins recording live video and audio that may assist responders and provide valuable documentation after an incident.”
A Police Presence
Insalaco recommends that facilities also get to know their local police. “Let them know you have concerns about safety and give them easy access to the facility,” he says. “You might offer free storage or host an event they’re planning. That can increase the likelihood of them patrolling the area.”
Extra Space Storage has hosted public safety fairs in the past, for example, and Midgard Self Storage has donated storage units and even got a shout-out from their local police department on social media.
Insalaco also suggests asking about the Extra Duty Program. This allows off-duty uniformed officers to park their patrol car outside the facility and walk the property. There’s a cost attached, but he says having them do this on occasion shows would-be criminals that police have an eye on the facility. “If your facility is known to randomly have police presence, criminals are likely to stay away because they never know when an officer may roll up.”
Final Thoughts
For all the discussion surrounding self-storage safety, operators stress that violence remains uncommon. When an incident does occur, Gibson says employees should never feel pressured to be heroes and that compliance, de-escalation, and personal safety should always come first. Yet as the Philadelphia shooting demonstrates, even doing everything “right” cannot eliminate risk entirely. Still, operators say that investing in training, technology, and police relationships can help deter crime, improve response, and better prepare employees for the unexpected.
In the end, the Philadelphia manager recovered and went home. Now, the goal of every operator should be to help ensure the next employee does too.
In The Trenches: A Manager’s Perspective
Still, two incidents in seven years isn’t a bad track record. However, she’s also experienced her share of awkward situations that had the potential to go south quickly. She recalls a customer who came in to rent a unit and she immediately had a bad feeling about him. “I’m the daughter of a police officer and a true crime aficionado. So I’ve got a pretty good read on people,” she laughs.
The customer insisted Torbert show him the unit, not her male co-worker Greg White. “She stays in the office, I show the units,” said White. The man continued to push back, stating he’d rather Torbert show the unit, but White remained firm and finally the man agreed.
After he’d moved in, Torbert and White’s curiosity got the best of them and they peeked through the chicken wire roofing of the unit. Inside? A single lamp. “It was super suspicious,” says Torbert.
Days later, the man returned, asking Torbert to help him with his lock. Unbeknownst to the tenant, White was working in the adjoining manager’s apartment. She texted him the company safe word and he emerged from the side door. Torbert says she could practically see the blood drain from the guy’s face. “I’ll just come back another time,” he said. Soon after, the unit was empty; he’d taken his lamp and left. “There was nothing to report because he didn't technically do anything wrong,” says Torbert. “But it didn’t feel right, and that’s why you’ve always got to be on high alert.”
Would Torbert have shown that unit had White not been there? “Probably, because that was my job.” However, she had a process for situations like this. “I’d tell people to meet me at the gate, and then I’d call someone and keep them on the line. At the gate, I'd say I need a photo of their driver’s license on the webcam to document who I take into the facility. That’s a big deterrent if someone is planning something nefarious.”
Another protocol she followed was tucking away the golf cart at night so anyone wanting to see a unit would have to follow her in their car. Some could argue that the potential criminal now has a getaway vehicle and quick access to a trunk, but Torbert insists that the distance is critical. “This helped maintain personal space. Plus, that facility required a code to get in and out, so unless they plowed through the gate, they’d be stuck.”
Surprisingly, Torbert says she would not keep the door locked after dark even though it would allow her to gauge a person’s demeanor before they entered. “If I was at the door, I could easily be pulled out or pushed in and attacked. I preferred to be behind my desk with my phone and hornet spray.” [Torbert contends it works as well as mace, but has a longer range; plus, no one thinks twice about a can of hornet spray being on a counter which gave her immediate access to it].
“Some facilities have buttons that can disengage the lock from behind the counter; I think those are a great solution. But ultimately, it’s up to you to be smarter than the bad actors. Be situationally aware. Take some self-defense classes. And don’t worry about making somebody feel bad if you don’t feel good about them.”
As the daughter of a police officer and someone who’s made friends at the local precinct (she was known to drop off coffee and donuts, and let the officers use the facility for K-9 training), Torbert feels a sense of camaraderie with law enforcement. And while she’s in no way comparing self-storage management to the work they do, she says there is a shared goal: “At the end of the day, we all want to get home safely.”
- Brad Hadfield is MSM's Lead Writer and Web Manager.