Shortly before 6:00 p.m. tonight, Wake County Sheriff's deputies responded to a call about a missing child. An eight year old autistic child enrolled in Project Lifesaver had wandered away from her home near Knightdale. Using Project Lifesaver equipment, Wake County Sheriff's deputies located the girl in just 24 minutes. The deputies found her approximately one mile from her home.

The Wake County Sheriff’s Office and the Pilot Club of Raleigh co-sponsor Project Lifesaver. Project Lifesaver is a rapid response program that locates people with brain disorders (i.e., Alzheimer’s, Autism, Down’s Syndrome, and Dementia) who wander away from their caregivers.

Members enrolled in the program wear a bracelet that contains a battery-operated transmitter that emits a tracking signal. If the member wanders away, the caregiver notifies the Sheriff’s Office. A search and rescue team goes to the wanderer’s area and uses a mobile receiver to pick up the member’s signal, thus locating the person.

The Wake County Sheriff’s Office conducts the search and rescue efforts.Pilot Club members enroll clients and change the transmitter batteries.

"Having Project Lifesaver certainly paid off tonight," Wake County Sheriff Donnie Harrison said. " A ground search for this child could have taken hours, but with our training and this equipment we found her in 24 minutes and safely returned her home."