When report of missing person reaches 911, the first minutes and hours are critical to ultimately locating the individual.
Since public launch in 2021, Prepared has played a key role in helping PSAPs and police departments efficiently and effectively locate missing persons and lost persons, streamlining information gathering and enabling the quick collection of next-generation media.
Pictures, video, and text add visual & written context that might be missed when a telecommunicator is forced to rely on a verbal description. From determining a specific hotel room, to parsing a cliff face for a stranded climber, to saving 14 people stranded in the middle of an icy lake, Prepared has continually provided 911 with the tools it needs.
Last month, the Tulsa Police Department added another success story to that list. Here's the details, shared by the Department on February 27th...
On 2/17/2025, an autistic teenager was reported missing near 12th and S. Trenton. We posted this local alert: https://bit.ly/3DjtNjO
At 2:09 p.m., Dispatcher Alexandra took a call from a Spanish-speaking woman who saw our social media post and believed she spotted the teenager at a gas station near 31st and Sheridan.
Earlier this year, the Public Safety Center, commonly referred to as 911 Dispatch, began using a new system called Prepared.
Dispatcher Alexandra used Prepared's translation service to communicate with the caller via text. Using Prepared, the Dispatcher was also able to receive a photo of the missing juvenile from the caller. The photo received from the caller matched the photo we posted on social media, verifying the location of the missing teen.
911 Dispatch quickly relayed this information to a Tulsa Police Officer, who responded to the area and found the missing teenager just minutes later. He was reunited with his family shortly after.
The Prepared system, which is also used by the Tulsa Police Real-Time Information Center, is used on every smartphone call to 911 and the non-emergency number. It gives callers the option to send photos, videos, and live streams with Dispatchers in emergencies, which can help relay critical information in many different situations.
Prepared also has AI functions that enable voice and text translation services, making it easier for dispatchers to communicate with non-English speakers.
The department also celebrated Dispatcher Alexandra and shined a light on her service...
Alexandra is one of our newest members, graduating from the academy in December. She went through on-the-job training and began taking calls on her own about a week before this incident.
Originally from Eastern Europe, Alexandra is quadrilingual, speaking Russian, Georgian, Irish, and English — and she's currently learning Spanish! Her family moved to California when she was five, and she moved to Oklahoma recently to be closer to her family.
Alexandra says she wanted to become a 911 Dispatcher because she wanted to serve the public, connect with people, and help them in any way she could.
We're grateful for Alexandra's hard work and for using new technology to help our Officers in the field quickly find the missing teenager!
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Amazing work, Alexandra! Thank you for all that you do for your community. We are so proud to be your partner.
Assisting Every Call For Service