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| Qwest Answers Call to Help Find Abducted Children |
July 17, 2003 |
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| AMBER Alerts Available to Qwest Field Techs
Albuquerque, NM-Congresswoman Heather Wilson today says Qwest is answering an important call by partnering with the New Mexico State Police to make Amber Alerts available to Qwest field technicians. The partnership allows for AMBER Alerts to be transmitted to Qwest technicians when a child is abducted and law enforcement decides to enact the AMBER Alert. These technicians, already canvassing the state in the course of their jobs, could serve as eyes and ears for law enforcement when a child is abducted.
Qwest now joins America Online and the New Mexico State Lottery as a corporate partner in the AMBER Alert system. Officials from the Albuquerque Police Department, the Bernalillo County Sheriff`s office, and the New Mexico State Police have worked hand-in-hand with the New Mexico Broadcasters Association and Wilson`s office to create the current AMBER partnership.
"Qwest`s actions today, in New Mexicoand nationally, bolsters the reach of the AMBER Alerts. This increases the probability that a child`s life could be saved by an Amber Alert and cooperation from commuters and now Qwest technicians," said Wilson. "I commend Qwest for their commitment to this program and to child safety. And New Mexicolaw enforcement deserves a lot of credit for taking advantage of this partnership opportunity."
Qwest technicians already canvass large portions of the state in the course of repairing and adjusting the company`s intricate communication systems. Under this new partnership, they will receive Amber Alerts via their pagers, enabling them to aid police by merely being aware that a search is underway. Through Amber Alerts, the technicians will receive a description of what police are looking for, which could include descriptive information about the abducted child, the suspect, or a vehicle.
"I`m proud that Qwest is taking the lead in supporting the efforts of Amber Alert in New Mexico," said John Badal, Qwest president for New Mexico. "The more eyes out there searching, the sooner we can bring another child home safely. I must also commend Congresswoman Wilson`s foresight and leadership in establishing the Amber Alert program in New Mexico."
New Mexico`s broadcast media led efforts in New Mexico to establish the AMBER Alerts after Wilson approached them and New Mexico law enforcement, asking them to consider partnering together to offer a service that could save a child`s life. AMBER Alerts became available in New Mexicoin April 2001 after months of planning to ensure that AMBER Alerts are used properly.
Today, the Albuquerque Police Department, Bernalillo County Sheriff`s Department, and the New Mexico State Police all have established AMBER Alert programs.
"It is an honor and pleasure to team up with Qwest on the Amber Alert project. This will be a tremendous enhancement and a valuable resource in the effort to protect New Mexico`s children," says Chief Carlos Maldonado of the New Mexico State Police.
Federal legislation that Wilson supported makes federal grants available to states with AMBER Alert programs and gives the Department of Justice the responsibility of coordinating interstate AMBER Alerts. President Bush signed that legislation earlier this spring, and detail of how the grants will work are still underway.
In October 2000, Wilson, a member of the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet, passed a resolution on the House floor urging communities around the country to implement the AMBER Alert. At that time, AMBER Alerts were just beginning to spread across the country. After passage of Wilson`s resolution, Wilson and her staff laid the groundwork in New Mexicofor implementation of the program in Albuquerque.
"This partnership between broadcasters and law enforcement and Qwest will dramatically increase the scope of the program," said Wilson. "We know from tragic experience that when a child is kidnapped, every second counts. Once those familiar emergency tones go out over New Mexico airwaves, hundreds of thousands of New Mexicans will hear information that could save a child`s life. And now Qwest employees working out on the streets and highways of the state will be specifically alerted to keep watch in their immediate area." Said Wilson.
An AMBER Alert uses the same Emergency Alert System (EAS) deployed in severe weather or national emergencies. When a law enforcement agency confirms that a child has been abducted and has clues or descriptions people can look for, it notifies Citadel`s KKOB Radio, designated New Mexico`s primary EAS radio station, which automatically relays the information to all area radio and TV stations and cable systems. Radio stations interrupt their programming with the alert, and TV stations and cable systems run a "crawl" message on the screen (often with a photo of the child). Some AMBER plans also use electronic highway billboards to disseminate the alerts.
Since the establishment of the first AMBER Alert plan in 1996, 32 abducted children nationally have been successfully recovered as a direct result of the prompt response of communities using their AMBER Alert plans.
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