Source: New Zealand Police
A world-first tool to assist emergency services in locating people in need is proving it’s weight in gold after being put to the test this week.
The Device Location Information (DLI) technology was launched last week, making it faster for Police to narrow the search area for people who are unable or unwilling to say where they are, in circumstances where it is neccessary to prevent or lessen a serious threat to the life or health of the individual concerned or another individual.
Northern Emergency Communications and Dispatch Centre Manager, Inspector Dan Weir, says the technology can be used by emergency services to find the network location of a mobile phone of the person in need.
“Last night, Police received a report of a person with an intellectual disability missing from their home in Matamata.
“The person hadn’t been seen for 30 minutes and had left their Wandatrak at home; it was raining and the persons family were becoming increasingly worried.”
Inspector Weir says the decision was made to allow the DLI service to be used, sending officers to the person’s location at a nearby park.
“The person was returned home 37 minutes after being reported missing, which is an incredible result.
“When every second counts, this service is yet another tool to help our teams get people the help they need to keep them safe.
“One of the most stressful parts of our job is trying to find out where people are when they’re distressed and in need of help but can’t tell us or don’t know where they are, or equally if someone is reporting a loved one missing and doesn’t know where they could be.”
The DLI service delivers an improvement on the previous capability, which meant manual requests had to be made to mobile network operators to try and locate a device.
“Earlier in the week the service was used to assist in locating a person who’s family had immediate concerns for their welfare.
“The person was found after being involved in a single vehicle crash in Piha, thankfully uninured, and was able to get the help they needed.
“Time can often be the difference between life and death and we’re thrilled to have access to this service.”
ENDS.
Holly McKay/NZ Police
