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Amber Alert, an acronym
for America’s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response, was named for Amber Rene
Hagerman (November 25, 1986 – January 15, 1996).
Thousands of
children, just like Amber, go missing worldwide every year, although in many countries,
statistics are either unavailable or unreliable for any number of reasons. In
Canada, the first statistics on missing children were released in 1987 and in
that year a staggering 57,233 were recorded. In 2019 that figure had dropped to
40,425 according to records compiled by the Canadian Police Information Centre
(CPIC), but is no less astonishing.
In the few global
statistics that were available (globalmissingkids,org), the United States led
the way with an estimated 460,000 children reported missing every year. In
Canada there were 45,288 (estimated) reported missing; United Kingdom there are
an estimated 112,853 missing children reported every year; Russia, an estimated
45,000 in 2015, India, 96,000 each year, Australia, an estimated 20,000 missing
children reports every year, and in Germany there were an estimated 100,000 cases
of missing children annually. While those numbers sound astoundingly high, in
reality even one missing child is one too many.
In Back in the
Valley, Book Two of the Emerald Valley Ranch series, parents Rowdy and Victoria
Brooks are thrust into that nightmare when their six year-old son, Daniel, goes
missing, his twin, Liam, left behind. It’s the first time the brothers have ever
been apart:
“The scream of
sirens filled the air as more cruisers arrived, one officer quickly beginning
to put up yellow crime scene tape.
“’ ‘Yes, that’s
what they’re saying. I’m down here now, in the parking lot.” Lindy sounded as
though she was about to cry. “I came in to get gas and ran into all of this.
They’re talking to everyone that’s here, but I came after the fact. Victoria’s
car is still at the pumps, and the door’s open. I know it’s hers because it’s
got Texas plates. The guy in the store said they’ll probably put out an Amber
Alert. Rowdy and Victoria and Liam are in the back in the office with the
police, but you could hear Liam crying at the top of his lungs, that poor
child. Just screaming. Oh Martin, this is horrible! A child abducted right here!
In Sussex!’ “
In addition to a
massive police response to locate the missing child and reunite him with his
family, in Back in the Valley, the community draws together in their tireless
search for any clues as to Daniel’s whereabouts. And then they get a major
break:
“ ‘9-1-1, what is
your emergency?’
‘Yes, I was
driving to work on the Noonan Road about twenty miles from Markhamville in
Kings County and I saw something lying on the side of the road, right beside
the grass. I was past it before I realized what I was looking at. I backed up
and sure enough, it was a child’s sneaker. My headlights reflected off the
decals on the side of it.’ “
Children can also
become lost of their own volition, separated from their parents at crowded
venues of any kind, or sometimes they can simply wander off into the woods. Whatever
may be the case, they’re unable to find their way back. When I was fifteen, a
short distance from where we lived a small child did just that, disappearing
from his grandparents’ backyard in rural New Brunswick, and off into heavily
forested backcountry. As I recall it happened in late spring and while daytime
temperatures were fairly warm, the nights were still cold. Searchers of all
ages came from far and wide to comb the area for this precious little boy. My
father also participated in the search and my mother made sandwiches to help
feed the volunteers. I remember delivering those sandwiches on my bicycle to
the search command post at the top of the hill; saw the distraught mother weeping
and being comforted as she waited for word about her son. And on the second day
he was found, about a mile away in dense woods lying under a tree, his shoes
and socks on the shores of the nearby lake. Sadly he had not been discovered in
time. Immediately airlifted to hospital by military helicopter, he succumbed to
the effects of his ordeal.
We were eating
supper the evening he was found, when frantic knocking sounded at our back
door. It was a reporter wanting to use the phone (those were the days before
cellphones) to call it in that rescuers had located the child. It is impossible
to forget the tension and sadness of that difficult time. There was a pall over
the entire community, and beyond, and tears fill my eyes all these many years
later as I’m writing this.
In Back in the
Valley, a well-meaning child becomes lost in dense woods when he decides to
conduct his own search for Daniel Brooks, and so authorities had two missing
children on their hands within a twenty-four hour period:
“Will studied the
mixed Acadian forest in the distance. ‘I say we give it an hour and if nothing,
we’re going to have to have help. They can bring in a dog if they have to.
There’s a lot of woods up there. Let’s get going, see if we see a print or
something that let’s us know we’re on the right track.’
“All three started
off, parking Martin’s truck alongside the edge of the woods and then setting
off on foot into the thick underbrush, over and around fallen rotting trees and
past sharp snags on tree trunks that made for slow going, and of course there
were the ever-present mosquitos. By 9:45 p.m. they were back, grim-faced as
they stood in the kitchen.
Martin ran a hand
over his face tiredly. ‘There’s no sign of him and he doesn’t answer. We’re
going to have to get some help right away. I’d say the rain isn’t far off.’”
When a missing
child meets the criteria for an amber alert, we the public can help by:
-
Watching for the child, suspect and/or the
vehicle described in the alert.
-
Giving information on the location of the
abduction and a description of the victim, suspect and/or any vehicle involved.
-
Immediately reporting any findings by calling
9-1-1 or the phone number included in the alert, but do not call 9-1-1 to request information about the abduction.
In
the event a child becomes lost or separated, kindercare.com offers sound precautionary
suggestions for parents:
-
children should be taught critical names and
numbers;
-
to freeze and stay in one place, right where
they are, until found, and don’t go off with anyone;
-
shout your name in a big strong voice, even
yelling Mom or Dad will work;
-
shout your child’s name as you search, don’t
worry about being polite;
-
equip your child with a whistle – a good loud
one that will attract attention.
Whether lost or
abducted, every year many missing children are indeed found and returned safely
to their grateful loved ones. Whatever the circumstances may be, or the
outcome, it is an unthinkable ordeal for the parents and loved ones, and in
both cases immediate action is required.
Amber Alert was
put in place in the US in 1996, and because of that child abduction alert system,
as of July 5, 2021, 1,074 missing children were brought to safety.
(ambertalert.ojp.gov.statistics).
Amber Hagerman’s
murder remains unsolved.
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