Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
Ed Yeates ReportingCivil Defense isn't what it used to be, like it was in the fifties, anyway! In fact, the new, 21st Century Civil Defense, or TACDA as it's called, has now developed a wearable band that tracks families separated in a natural or manmade disaster.
It looks like a hospital ID band, but this one is much more. The non-profit American Civil Defense Association or TACDA says this new, almost indestructable wristband is designed to keep track of your loved ones, even your pets, in the event of a major disaster.
Each member of the family would have the same bar code, separated by only one number.
Sharon Packer, The American Civil Defense Association: "In the event they are separated, the surviving member can say, 'Here's my number, find the other members of my family.' And we have a dedicated URL that we can do pre-registration if they desire."
Whether you register a band with TACDA, the Red Cross, even your veterinarian, it doesn't matter. When the call goes out to match up the codes with others.
Sharon Packer: "And it's registered with everybody - the symbology, the 138 symbology, that code so every hospital can read it."
In this post Katrina/9-11 era these bands are the new Civil Defesne for use in homes, businesses, cruise ships, even schools.
Sharon Packer: "If students were scattered or injured or killed, they would be identified immediately by that tag number."
TACDA is not a newcomer to identifying the movements of people during an emergency. The Metag, for example, is now used by all emergency personnel throughout the world. In fact, these color codes are easily recognizable no matter what language you speak.
If you're injured and being transported to a hospital, chances are you're wearing one of these Metag triage labels.
For more information on the bands, call TACDA at 1-800-425-5397.