Project Lifesaver

On October 29, 2001, the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office implemented an exciting new program called Project Lifesaver. Project Lifesaver is designed as a rapid response search and rescue service, using state of the art technologies and strategies to prevent or reduce the potential of harm to individuals suffering from Alzheimer's, Downs Syndrome, Autism, traumatic brain injuries, and mental dysfunctions. These individuals may tend to wander away from their residences and become confused or lost.

In the past, the only option available to locate these individuals who have wandered away from safety, was to conduct an extensive and often lengthy search. These searches often involved hundreds of personnel from local law enforcement agencies, fire departments and rescue squads. These searches may take as little time as just a few hours, or up to several days or weeks.

Project Lifesaver is a program that is available to all Montgomery County citizens, which includes those that live within the towns of Blacksburg and Christiansburg. The project is designed for persons who are receiving in home care.

Individuals who join Project Lifesaver are equipped with a small-personalized radio transmitter that is worn on a wristband. When a participant wanders away, the caregiver will contact our office and a trained team will respond to conduct a search with a devise designed to receive the person's transmitted signal. The average rescue time is 22 minutes once the team is on site.

With the implementation of Project Lifesaver, we are able to be proactive rather than reactive. We can give caregivers a peace of mind and reassurance. We are able to save time, save manpower, save money and most of all--save lives.

The program originated in King, North Carolina in 1996. In April of 1999 the Chesapeake Sheriff's Office and the 43rd Va. Search and Rescue introduced the program in Virginia. The Montgomery County Sheriff's Office was the first agency to offer this program in southwestern Virginia.

This project has been made possible through funding received from the Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS), the County of Montgomery, local civic groups, businesses and citizens.

Persons who know of someone who may benefit from this program or wish to find out more about Project Lifesaver may contact Lt. Brian Wright or Deputy Jimmy Bowyer at (540) 382-6914.

Financial contributions may be sent to:

The Montgomery County Sheriff's Office
Project Lifesaver
16 S. Franklin Street
Christiansburg, Virginia 24073