Sheriff, state police, roll out ‘Project Lifesaver’ in Washington County
State police and the Washington County Sheriff’s Department came together Wednesday to announce “Project Lifesaver” is now in operation.
Sheriff Tony Andronas joined Rocco Gagliardi, a state police public information officer, at the Washington barracks to demonstrate how the program will help at-risk people who may wander away and get lost.
Project Lifesaver provides them with a transmitter set to a unique radio frequency, while state police troopers and sheriff deputies will have a device that can be used to pinpoint the person’s location. Gagliardi said state police have been using Project Lifesaver with the district attorney’s office in Allegheny County.
“This is our next step in expanding upon our troop’s coverage with this device, and his project,” Gagliardi said. “So now that we are pairing up with the Washington County sheriff’s office we will now be helping locate those in Allegheny County, and also Washington County.”
The sheriff’s department raised the money to purchase the equipment through community donations. Andronas said the program has a $4,500 startup fee.
Gagliardi demonstrated how the tracking device used by police can be set to the frequency of the transmitter they are trying to locate. It captures signals from all 360 degrees, and lets off a light “ding” if it is in range of the transmitter.
If the device is pointed directly at the transmitter the “ding” becomes significantly louder.
People who may qualify include those on the autism spectrum, suffer from post traumatic stress disorder or Alzheimer’s.
Andronas explained that his office will handle registration for the program and distributing the transmitters.
“You would touch base with our office during the week. We would then have you come up, we would assign a device to you. Any maintenance or battery concerns, we will handle that as well. As (Gagliardi) said, this would be free of charge for the resident,” Andronas said.
Project Lifesaver is a nonprofit organization that was founded in 1999. Its website states that in that time, the program has helped lead to the rescue of more than 4,300 people.
Gagliardi notes that Washington County is much more rural than Allegheny County, and tracking cellphones is not as reliable a tactic.
“If they are in a place with no cellphone service, that makes our lives a little bit more difficult … by having a dedicated resource where we do not have to rely on where that person goes missing, and having its own dedicated radio frequency, is huge for us,” Gagliardi said.
Officers will not be limited by using handheld devices to track the transmitters, either.
“Not only do we have a handheld device, we can attach antennas to our patrol vehicles, and once we drive and get that dedicated ping … We know we can stop the car and get out of the car and transition to the handheld device,” Gagliardi said.
Those interested in enrolling in Project Lifesaver can contact the sheriff’s office at 724-228-6840.