OSWEGO COUNTY – A person with Alzheimer’s disease wandered out of their home in the town of Hastings one evening. The individual was enrolled in the Project Lifesaver Program and was wearing a transmitter bracelet.
As soon as the call went out over the air from the Oswego County E-911 Center, volunteers from the Oswego County Search and Rescue Team, deputies from the Oswego County Sheriff’s Office, and troopers from the New York State Police began looking for the individual using Project Lifesaver equipment.
Less than five minutes after arriving, a member of the search and rescue team found the missing person – ending one of many successful Project Lifesaver searches in Oswego County.
Project Lifesaver is a highly-effective program that helps first responders find missing persons who have Alzheimer’s disease, Down syndrome, dementia, autism and other related disorders. The program provides specialized equipment and necessary training for law enforcement and other public safety agencies to locate people who are prone to wandering.
Oswego County has maintained a contract with Project Lifesaver International since 2011.
“The 9-1-1 Emergency Communications Department handles the application process and performs all administrative duties associated with Project Lifesaver in Oswego County,” said Kevin Pooley, director of the Oswego County E-911 Center. “All law enforcement agencies in Oswego County have certified Project Lifesaver field technicians. The County Sheriff’s Office conducts training and coordinates the program with local law enforcement agencies.”
Pooley said that no one who meets the criteria for Project Lifesaver is turned away.
Clients are fitted with a personalized bracelet transmitter that emits a unique tracking signal. Members of local law enforcement agencies visit the person’s home to fit them with a bracelet, and then check on the equipment and change the batteries every month.
When someone wearing a Project Lifesaver transmitter is reported missing, trained first responders are dispatched by the county E-911 Center. The client’s signal can be tracked by receiver units on the ground or in the air to pinpoint the lost person’s location.
On average nationally, the recovery time of a client who has gone missing wearing a Project Lifesaver bracelet is 30 minutes.
“Project Lifesaver is an important search tool that we use and train on regularly,” said Aaron Albrecht, executive coordinator of the Oswego County Pioneer Search and Rescue Team. “This program is very effective in locating subjects who have autism, dementia and similar conditions.”
For information about enrolling in the program, contact the Oswego County E-911 Center by calling 1-315-349-8215 or 1-800-679-3911 or go to the County’s Project Lifesaver web page.
The Oswego County Pioneer Search and Rescue Team received grant funding to create a video and brochure about Project Lifesaver in Oswego County. For information and to view the video, visit https://www.oswegocountysar.org.
Groups who are interested in a presentation about Project Lifesaver may contact Janet West Clerkin, public information officer for the search and rescue team, at [email protected].
Funding for the project was provided by the Shineman Foundation, Oswego County Community Foundation, Stewart’s Shops, PathFinder Bank, Fulton Savings Bank and Brookfield Renewable U.S.
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