Project Lifesaver

The York Regional Police Project Lifesaver Program combines radio technology with police rescue teams to build an effective life-saving system for wandering and disoriented loved ones. This program has proven itself to be:

• reliable
• responsive
• practical
• affordable

About Project Lifesaver
Project Lifesaver International is a non-profit organization that has received world-wide recognition for its public safety program. It uses an electronic tracking device that has been proven to save lives because it leads police to the missing people even in minimal time.

Over the last 10 years there have been more than 1623 successful searches with an average recovery time of less than 30 minutes. These searches include vulnerable persons suffering from:

• Alzheimer’s disease
• Autism
• Down’s syndrome.
• Other mental disabilities

In every case, the persons being found was alive and brought home safely. Project Lifesaver has now come to Canadian Police Services.

How Project Lifesaver Works
Those who are a part of the Project Lifesaver program wear a personalized wristband that emits a tracking signal. When caregivers notify York Regional Police that the person is missing, a Search and Rescue Unit team responds to the area where the lost person was last seen and searches the area with a mobile location tracking system. The Project Lifesaver wristband is a one ounce, battery-operated wrist transmitter emitting an FM radio frequency-based signal that emits a signal every second, 24 hours a day.

The signal is tracked on the ground or in the air over several kilometres. As each wristband has a unique radio frequency, the Project Lifesaver team can positively locate and identify the person who has wandered away from home using portable directional antennae to locate the signal.

This program operates as a non-profit and works within a cost recovery framework. The cost of the equipment is $300 at initial enrolment, which covers the cost of the bracelet. Moving forward, there is an additional monthly fee of $10 for the replacement of the battery and bracelet when needed.

Download the program application here.

Community Partnerships
Project Lifesaver can only succeed with strong community partnerships. York Regional Police is proud to partner with:

• The Alzheimer’s Society of York Region
• The Autism Society of Ontario

Project Lifesaver is supported by York Regional Police volunteers. Their continuous commitment and support to the participants and their families contributes greatly to its success.

Contacts:

Project Lifesaver Coordinator
Phone: 1-866-8-POLICE x 6668

projectlifesaver@yrp.ca