Here's what happens to abandoned property found along Utah highways

SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Department of Public Safety is often called upon to rescue an errant belonging that flies off the roof of a vehicle or out of a truck bed. Turns out, they're happy to help.

"Sometimes people just think, initially, 'Oh, it's lost. There's no hope.' But we're out on these roads all the time," Utah Highway Patrol Lt. Jalaine Hawkes said. "We have troopers out there working 24/7 ... we're very familiar with our roadways and our areas, and we're very familiar with the patterns of where things end up."

Of course, location matters, and if a driver can provide a general idea of where an item may have gone missing, that's helpful.

"When you're out and traveling and you realize you've lost something, whether it has sentimental value or monetary value to you … we're always a good option for you to call," Hawkes said.

Public safety officers, which encompasses the Utah Highway Patrol, are often called to find things along busy roadways, and while it's mostly trash, they also find items that have been there a long time — including some more surprising items, like a random firearm.

"It's not very frequent that we find things by the side of the freeway. ... Sometimes when we're out on accident scenes or by the side of the road, we'll see things," Hawkes said. "It's more accidental items that people are not aware they left on the top of a car or in the back of a truck that we're asked to help with."

The most memorable items, she recalls, are stuffed animals or toys that belong to kids, which often result in an emotional reunion.

The department was once asked to keep an eye out for a personalized photo album a family had lost after packing for a vacation and didn't realize was missing until much later.

"We never did find that," Hawkes said.

The Department of Public Safety will try to contact potential owners of anything with identifying information, such as a serial number or name tag. Each item procured goes through a process, and people have a certain amount of time to respond. Hawkes said anything without identifying information typically gets disposed of after 10 days.

"This definitely gives us an opportunity to serve our community in an unusual way," she said.

Related topics