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LAYTON — Laura Anderson has a 15-year-old boy with autism, so she knows what it's like to worry about them wandering and disappearing out from under you.
"There's nothing worse than losing your child," she said.
Worse still, is if the child does have autism — with its various accompanying challenges that keep individuals from realizing the danger they're in.
"We’re dealing with children and adults who are non-verbal, who are not able to express themselves, who have no safety awareness," Anderson said. "They don't know that they're lost or, in our case, our son wouldn't stop. He would just keep going. He would walk into a home. He would get into a car. He would step out onto a freeway."
Knowing that feeling made Anderson especially understand and appreciate the partnership Layton Police Department has forged with the technology company EmFinders. The company produces a device called EmSeeQ, which is worn like a wristwatch and operates like a tiny, one-way cell phone.
It was developed as a way to quickly locate missing people with cognitive impairments, such as Alzheimer's, dementia or autism, said EmFinders vice president of sales Harry Smeenk. The device has been on the market about two years and, on average, assists in locating a person feared missing within 27 minutes.
Smeenk said the family member or caregiver should first notify their area police dispatch and then the 24-hour EmFinders call center, which can activate the device. In turn, the center places an outgoing call to 911 in the area where the individual is located. It typically takes about 10 minutes for the device to activate.
"It is 10 minutes," Smeenk said. "But compared to a search and rescue that can take 24, 48 hours, it's nothing, really."
As part of a demonstration, the gadget was placed Thursday on a Layton police officer, who then took off on a bike. Smeenk placed a call to EmFinders and, within about seven minutes, a call came into police dispatch. An automated voice informed the dispatcher that it was a "critical missing person" call and included a location.
The longitude and latitude coordinates are updated every 20-25 seconds.
Anderson, of the Autism Council of Utah, attended the demonstration along with representatives from Alzheimer's Association - Utah, the Davis County School District and area elderly-care facilities. Dispatchers from other police agencies were also present.
"By taking the lead on this, we can educate other community groups, which is going to be a great service," Layton Police Lt. Garrett Atkin said.
The Layton Police Department was given 10 devices that will be rented out for use as needed. The gadgets cost $25 a month.
Layton police spent approximately 425 hours between June 2010 and July 2011 on walk-away and missing persons cases involving people with Alzheimer's, dementia or autism. This prompted the department to start looking for some sort of technology that could save officers time and money and aid the population at risk.
The department was given 10 devices that will be rented out for use as needed. The gadgets cost $25 a month. Interested individuals, businesses and organizations can also purchase their own for their own, personal use.
"To guarantee your child's safety and to have the ability to locate them is priceless," Anderson said. "To have the Layton Police Department step forward and say: 'We are embracing this idea, we see the value of it and we're moving forward,' makes us so happy."
Email: emorgan@ksl.com
