The Calgary Police Service is among the first to implement new technology that could help locate missing children when tragedy strikes.
The Missing Children Society of Canada (MCSC) has just released its rescu web app, which allows Canadians to opt into missing children alerts by signing up for notifications.
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According to a release from the Calgary Police Service, there are tens of thousands of missing children cases every year in Canada (42,233 in 2018 alone), though fewer than 1% of those cases are broadcast as an Amber Alert.
The app, which was created by Toronto-based company Ersi Canada, allows Canadians to sign up to receive updates on the MCSC webpage or to receive text message alerts on cases in their area.
“Communicating through geography is extremely powerful,” said Amanda Pick, Missing Children Society of Canada CEO, in the release.
“With the MCSC rescu web app, we’re able to share information with the police and the public through easy-to-understand dynamic maps, and push alerts to people in specific locations, even down to a street. This allows us to find children faster, but we need every single Canadian to help us.”
The app went live on Tuesday, September 10, with two Albertan police departments being the first to adopt the app into their investigations; The Calgary Police Service and the Tsuut’ina Nation Police Service.
“Public safety is a shared responsibility,” said CPS Superintendent Cliff O’Brien in the release.
“MCSC rescu is an excellent example of how all of us, whether you’re an individual or an organization, can work together towards a single objective: to find a missing child. I encourage everyone across Canada to use this technology and help bring our missing children back to safety.”
Registration is available at rescu.mcsc.ca.
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