Local residents – those with a traditional home phone line, anyway – were called upon to help look for a child that ran away, but was later found, over the weekend.
Winfield Police used so-called reverse 911 technology to call local residents and provide automated information about a description of the child, whose name has not been released. Chief Danny Parker said the child, a 10-year-old boy, was found about an hour later.
“You can use the technology to target certain areas where a child might be, but in this case we called all of Winfield,” Parker said. “It’s another tool we have to get the word out in an emergency.”
Saturday police were contacted by the parent of a boy who had run away while the parent was inside Gambino’s Pizza. The child apparently was upset and angry with his parent.
Police were concerned because the child had taken off without his coat around 6 p.m., when it was starting to get darker and colder.
The child was eventually found, several blocks away, by police.
“I think he was still even trying to run a little bit when we caught up with him,” Parker said.
While Parker said it was unclear if the automated calls – which are placed by an out-of-state company – helped directly, it was clear that some local residents had been informed a child was missing and were keeping an eye out for him.
