When someone with autism or dementia wanders away from home, every minute counts. Now, Freeport residents have access to a tool that could help police find a missing person in a matter of minutes, not hours or days.
Last week, the Freeport Police Department joined the list of about 1,700 agencies worldwide participating in Project Lifesaver, a program that helps find people who are prone to wandering off due to cognitive issues.
Project Lifesaver clients are typically people with dementia, autism, Alzheimer’s or similar conditions. Once registered with the program, clients wear a device that can be tracked by local authorities in case of an emergency. The device’s average recovery time is around 30 minutes.
During the two-day training, six officers practiced finding bracelets that were hidden throughout Freeport, familiarizing themselves with how the tracking device works.
Freeport is searching for local clients for the two bracelets they have to start. These two spots will be available to Freeport residents who qualify free of charge, according to Freeport Police Sgt. Paul Powers.
“I felt that it was an invaluable tool,” said Powers. “(It’s) something we can use to deploy and quickly locate somebody and hopefully get them back home as quickly as possible.”
Powers estimated that Freeport Police Department responds to several calls each year related to individuals that have wandered off. “Sometimes it’s like a needle in a haystack basically, especially here in Maine where there are a lot of wooded areas,” he said.
According to Powers, the current protocol for searching for a person that has wandered off occasionally requires large groups of people and a K-9 unit. Project Lifesaver could dramatically improve and expedite the process, he said.
“Especially in Maine where it’s really cold and really snowy at some times of the year, we could bring a loved one home that has wandered off in minutes as opposed to hours,” Powers added.
As of Sunday, Project Lifesaver, which was founded in 1998, has recorded 3,782 rescues from agencies in Canada, the United States and Australia. Besides Freeport, there are seven other partner agencies in Maine, one being Brunswick.
According to Brunswick Police Department’s Project Lifesaver Coordinator Joe Westrich, who assisted with Freeport’s training, his department has been a Project Lifesaver agency since 2014 and has around 7 bracelets, most of which have been obtained through donations.
Over the years, however, Brunswick has had trouble with finding clients, and according to Westrich, there is one active in Brunswick, but there were three active clients at the program’s peak.
“(We’re trying) to get that word out to Brunswick and now Freeport residents that this service is available to them,” Westrich said. “And again, it’s no cost to the caregiver.”
According to Project Lifesaver Chief of Operations Paul Ballance, Brunswick is not alone, and other partner public safety agencies nationwide have also, at times, had trouble finding clients.
“A lot of it, people don’t want to wear a band because they think that it’s cumbersome or it’s like being under house arrest,” Ballance said. “It’s just an educational thing for both the caregiver and the client that it’s not that, it’s there to protect you, to help you in the event you get lost.”
A study from the Alzheimer’s Association found that in Maine there are about 29,000 people aged 65 and older with Alzheimer’s and that that number is growing. The study also stated that there are about 46,000 family caregivers in the state, which translates to 68 million hours of unpaid care.
Those in Freeport that are interested in getting involved with the program are asked to contact Powers at (207) 865-4800. For Brunswick, contact Westrich at JWestrich@brunswickpd.org.
Comments are not available on this story.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
