San Francisco looks like the zombie apocalypse world of the TV show The Walking Dead, a Google employee has warned.
Sam Padilla, who grew up in Brazil and Colombia, said the “sketchy” California city “doesn’t compare” to the notoriously dangerous South American countries.
The Austin tech worker was stunned by his visit to the Bay Area and took to X to post his thoughts.
‘Holy shit. I walked from Soma to Hayes Valley via Market St and it was the sketchiest walk of my life.
“It looked like a scene straight out of the walking dead.” Sad. I walked around a corner where there were easily 100 people, many of them visibly tall. Probably a shelter.
San Francisco looks like zombie apocalypse world from TV show The Walking Dead, Google Sam Padilla warned
The Austin tech worker was stunned by his visit to the Bay Area, which is mired in a drug crisis. In the photo: Homeless people using drugs in the city in 2022
The surprised Google employee posted his thoughts on the state of San Francisco on X
San Francisco has been plunged into crisis in recent years with skyrocketing levels of homelessness and addiction.
Last year was the deadliest year on record for drug deaths, thanks in large part to the proliferation of fentanyl.
Progressive “harm reduction” policies that do not criminalize hard drug use have been blamed for worsening the crisis.
Padilla stated that the area “felt close, if not worse, than the damn cartridge street in Bogotá.”
The notoriously dangerous area was located in one of the poorest areas of the city and was known for drug trafficking.
Authorities have struggled to control the situation in San Francisco, where rising crime rates have forced many well-known names to close their businesses in the city.
On Wednesday, American Eagle announced that it had become the latest victim of the lawlessness prevalent in the downtown area.
The retailer will close its doors at the former Westfield San Francisco Center over the summer, citing more than 100 major security incidents that reportedly occurred between May 2020 and May 2023.
The once thriving shopping center is now a shadow of its former self, with occupancy at just 25 percent at the start of the year.
Padilla described San Francisco as “incomplete” and suggested he would not like to return
A homeless encampment under a freeway overpass in San Francisco on April 22, 2024.
Padilla, who grew up in Brazil and Colombia, said the “incomplete” California city “doesn’t compare” to South American countries. In the photo: Homeless camp in April 2024
A DailyMail.com investigation revealed how the shopping center had been overrun by homeless people and how drug use and crime had skyrocketed.
Padilla said he was even more disturbed to see one of San Francisco’s controversial self-driving cars.
«At that moment an unoccupied FSD Waymo car passed by. It was the first time I saw one without a human behind the wheel. And he just hit me. “San Francisco is the epitome of a technological dystopia.”
Driverless vehicles have come under a fair amount of criticism due to several concerning safety incidents.
In February, Waymo issued a software recall after two of its vehicles collided with a tow truck in Arizona in December.
Mayor London Breed has previously insisted that her city is a “punching bag” and does not deserve the headlines it has generated.
However, the severity of the situation has caused the progressive legislator to support aggressive measures to address the crisis.
Breed is pushing for single adults to be tested for drug addiction before receiving welfare benefits amid the city’s growing fentanyl crisis.
He compared the chaos to the scenes on Cartucho Street in Bogotá, previously one of the most dangerous neighborhoods in the city. In the photo: A Colombian army soldier patrols Cartucho Street in Bogotá on Saturday, May 30, 1998.
Last year was the deadliest year on record for drug deaths, thanks in large part to the proliferation of fentanyl.
Padilla was also baffled by the driverless Waymo cars driving around the city.
Breed is backing a pair of “aggressive” public safety proposals that would require roughly 9,000 single adults on welfare to be tested and treated for illegal drug addiction or lose their cash assistance.
He is also pushing for police to be given more powers to combat crime, such as the use of drones and surveillance cameras.
However, his opponents have criticized the policies, saying that “there are more ethical ways to address the issue other than punitive measures.”