Wellington OPP and its counterparts with Guelph Police Service have an effective tool for use in locating missing people.
Project Lifesaver, a radio-frequency tracking device and transmitter, was instrumental recently in helping to find a man in the Rockwood area who had been reported missing.
The 78-year-old man, according to OPP Constable Heather Nellis, suffers from dementia and went missing from his residence. Within 12 minutes of receiving the call, police found the man wandering in the community.
Nellis, who has served with Wellington OPP since 2008 and is a 21-year veteran of the force, trains officers in the use of the equipment.
There are 18 officers trained in using the tracking device in the county and 25 in Guelph.
“Project Lifesaver Guelph Wellington helps families to protect members who may wander, typically individuals living with Alzheimer’s disease, autism, Down syndrome, acquired brain injury or other kinds of cognitive impairment,” states a public brochure about the equipment issued by Victim Services Wellington.
“We want to keep loved ones at home as long as possible,” Nellis said during a demonstration of the equipment at the Rockwood Conservation Area campground.
The equipment consists of a tracking device and transmitter bracelet assigned to people who qualify for the program.
The one-ounce transmitter is fixed to the person with a bracelet and they are allocated a transmission number which police use when tracking the person’s whereabouts after receiving a missing person report.
“It has a frequency attached to that transmitter that is unique to them,” Nellis said.
She added OPP have chosen the radio frequency tracking device instead of a GPS system because it isn’t hindered by the landscape a missing person might find themselves in.
“Radio frequency is the most accurate in searching for missing persons,” Nellis said.
The tracking device has a range of 1.6 kilometres and can be operated on foot or from a police cruiser.
Applicants for the program are screened to confirm they meet Project Lifesaver criteria. Information is provided to applicants about the program and the equipment before they are registered.
When a report of a missing person is received by police the equipment is signed out by one of the trained officers from the Rockwood OPP detachment, which has two tracking devices.
The bracelet cost about $400, plus $10 batteries that have to be replaced monthly. Nellis said families who find the cost too high can get financial assistance from the Lions Club, which supports the program.
“No client will go without,” she added.
There are four clients currently registered with county OPP and 11 with Guelph police.
Surprisingly, Nellis said, clients equipped with transmitter bracelets tend not to wander.
“When the bracelet gets put on, that person just doesn’t wander anymore,” she said of a benefit police have found.
Most wanderings take place during the day, as was the case in Rockwood.
Both county OPP and Guelph police have had the equipment for about three years, after the forces looked at a similar system employed in Essex County.
“There was some interest here and Victim Services steamrolled the project,” Nellis said of its placement in Wellington County.
During the demonstration the tracking device emitted a regular “beep” which grew stronger the closer the operator got to the transmitter.
Nellis said the equipment is just another part of the arsenal available to police to help keep the community safe.
