Cape police initiate silent test of region's Amber Alert system

Radio listeners across Southeast Missouri didn't hear it Tuesday morning, but behind the radio waves a silent message was transmitted that may someday save lives.

A fax testing Southeast Missouri's Amber Alert system was successfully sent by Cape Girardeau police to three regional radio stations: KEZS in Cape Girardeau, KKLR in Poplar Bluff, Mo., and KTJJ in Farmington, Mo.

The one-page alert form was faxed to the stations at 10:30 a.m. by Lt. John Davis, who then called each station to confirm they got it.

Tuesday's regional test marked a halfway point in a process already six months old. The program is designed to alert broadcasters within minutes of a child abduction in order to get help from the public.

"Amber has been around for a while in other areas," said Dave Obergoenner, head engineer for Zimmer Broadcasting Inc., which owns the Cape Girardeau and Poplar Bluff stations. "There have been some success stories over the last year with kids being found, and that got everyone here hot on it."

The first Amber Alert system was developed after the 1996 kidnapping and murder of 9-year-old Amber Hagerman in Arlington, Texas.

The form with details about a missing child was developed by a law enforcement task force made up of officers in a 13-county region covered by the Missouri State Highway Patrol. The group includes Cape Girardeau, Sikeston and Perryville police.

If the alert sent Tuesday had been authentic, the stations would have activated their civil emergency alert systems, or EAS, recognizable by sharp buzz tones that precede important announcements.

These three broadcasters are "local primary" stations -- meaning they are always manned and have emergency backup power for their studios and transmitters, Obergoenner said.

"Up until now, the primary use of the EAS has been for weather," he said. "This was the first local use of the EAS that steps out of the weather alerts."

Southeast Missouri's alert system will be incorporated with whatever plan the state eventually develops, he said. Other regions of the state, including those surrounding Kansas City, St. Louis and Springfield have also developed similar regional plans.

In August, a bill signed by the governor will create the framework for the "Alert Missouri" system. The Department of Public Safety will divide the state into four regions, providing a coordinated effort between law enforcement agencies and media. If a local agency does not have an alert system in place, the DPS will notify local media for them. A 10-member committee made up of state department representatives and appointees will oversee the program.

Participation in the statewide system will be voluntary for police agencies and media.

Davis said more planning is needed before the region's system is complete.

"Even though we've been working on it for some time, we still cannot activate an actual Amber Alert," he said, adding that more discussions between broadcasters and law enforcement are planned.

A final draft of the form will be provided to participating law enforcement agencies and broadcasters at a training meeting July 22 at the Cape Girardeau Police Department, and a live, on-air test of the regional system is being planned for early August, he said.

mwells@semissourian.com

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