Parents and relatives of children and adults with special needs are encouraged to sign up for the Special Needs Registry, which helps Sheriff’s deputies aid their children quicker in case of an emergency.

On the latest “Santa Clarita Sheriff Talk” on KHTS AM-1220, sponsored by All American Bail Bonds in Santa Clarita, Emily Iland, a local advocate and researcher in the autism field; Kevin Tonoian, city clerk and administrative services manager; and Lieutenant Brenda Cambra of the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station discussed the registry and its importance.

“We’re concerned about safety … and we are concerned about having a quick rescue if someone goes missing,” said Emily Illand. “(The registry is about) creating a tool that’s free to everybody that lives in the Santa Clarita area and is served by our Sheriff’s Station.”

The purpose of the registry is to provide deputies with information about the adult or child with any special needs and how to interact with them in emergency situations.

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“The idea is that you provide information in advance through this secure tool online. You provide a photograph, you tell the sheriff’s how to help this person, who to contact,” said Iland. “Everything the sheriffs would need to know about the person and would spend a lot of time gathering in an emergency (is) already there at their fingertips.”

Law enforcement benefits from the registry by allowing them to quickly identify the individual, and provides them with important information right away.

“This is very helpful for us because when you finally call the police because there’s a problem, everyone there is stressed,” said Lieutenant Brenda Cambra. “It saves a lot of time for law enforcement and it helps the parent or guardian get through that first few hours where we need their help and we’re asking them for things and they’re so stressed.”

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When speaking about the registry, Kevin Tonoian was able to pull from personal experiences he had with his son, who is on the autism spectrum.

“When he was younger, he always had a great fixation with water — if we were at the carwash, the fountain at the town center,” said Tonoian. “So absolutely for parents with children that have special needs, especially those that tend to elope or wander off, that have fixations like that, it’s just a concern.”

Iland added that out of 100,000 children with autism, about 50 percent have wandered off, and of those not found, 91 percent drowned.

“We don’t want one more family in Santa Clarita to be part of (that) statistic, and sadly, many families here are already part of those statistics. That’s what we’re trying to prevent,” said Iland. “We’re trying to put a tool into people’s hands that speeds up the recovery process, that facilitates sharing of crucial information and helps everybody during a real crisis time.”

Tonoian encourages any Santa Clarita residents with a special needs relative to register them.

“This is an invaluable resource for families who have a special needs member… Go to the city’s website and (sign up)… It takes about five minutes,” said Tonoian.

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