An RCMP Sergeant says Amber Alert works. Bert Paquet says Amber Alert is a partnership between law enforcement agencies, the media and the public that activates an urgent public appeal for information in a child abduction case.

2016 05 paquet
(RCMP Sergeant Bert Paquet)According to Paquet, the Amber Alert system began in 1996, in Dallas-Fort Worth. It was named after Amber Hagerman, an abducted nine year old girl. Officials of the day believed a system like Amber Alert could have potentially saved Hagerman's life. They launched the pilot project but immediately it became a tool within the law enforcement community, spreading into Canada.

Paquet stresses Amber Alert is not used in all missing persons cases. It is not used if adults are missing and only in a confirmed case of abduction will Amber Alert be used. Which is why an Amber Alert was not issued back in March when two year old Chase Martens went missing near Austin.

"We knew from the start this was not an abduction," says Paquet. "We kept it in mind for the first few hours but it was not confirmed, we never had enough or sufficient evidence to say, 'this is potentially or it is an abduction.' Because of that the Amber Alert was never considered."

Paquet stresses it is an instrument of last resort in cases of abduction for victims that are children.

"We need reason to believe that the victim is in danger or serious physical injury as well," he says. "So we need a confirmed abduction, we need a suspect potentially as well as potentially a vehicle associated to that suspect. We need something that the public can look for, other than just a child."

And, by pushing an alert to the public, it means more eyes and ears are available to potentially locate an abducted child as quickly as possible.

2016 05 missing
(SteinbachLive App)Because of the immediacy of Amber Alert, radio has always been a key medium used. Paquet says that has evolved to now also include social media. Dave Lehman with Golden West says the SteinbachLive App is another avenue in helping locate an abducted child.

Lehman says the company is committed to helping the community and making it a better, safer place. He notes it is critical in the event of an abducted child to be able to contact as many people as possible and as quickly as possible.

"We all have loved ones, and if one of them went missing, we'd all want to have the greatest chance of finding them, as quickly as possible," says Lehman.

With the SteinbachLive App, any Amber Alert message can now be instantly sent out through a push notification.

"It's critical that we can notify as many people as possible," explains Lehman. "You may be the one person that could contribute to finding the missing person."

Even if you never want to use the App, you can contribute to the safety of our community by just downloading it and having it on your phone. You can subscribe only to that one channel, and then the only time you will ever be bothered is if an Amber Alert notification is sent.

SteinbachLive is available for iOS and Android through the iTunes App store and Google Play store.

Even though it has been around for twenty years, Paquet says Amber Alert is still a work in progress. He notes it is being tweaked and tested on a regular basis in order to make it as efficient as possible.

As of December, 2015, more than 800 children in North America have been reunited with their parents thanks to Amber Alert.

"We know it works," says Paquet. "We've never utilized it here thankfully and hopefully we will never have to."