The next time an AMBER Alert is issued in Ontario, roughly 3,000 trucks will be aiding in the search.
On Tuesday, FedEx Canada announced a new partnership with the AMBER Alert Ontario program which will see broadcasts sent directly to its employees through their mobile Power Pads, the handheld instruments customers usually use to sign for a package delivery.
“The beauty part about this program is everything’s already been in place,” FedEx Canada senior communications specialist James Anderson told AM980.
“We sat down with the OPP and said ‘look, we’ve got this vast network of 3,000 trucks out on the road on any given day and 6,500 employees, but we also have technology at our disposal that makes us a unique partner.”
The AMBER Alert Ontario program is a voluntary plan involving the Ontario Association of Broadcasters, law enforcement agencies, and the Ontario Ministry of Transportation used to alert the public in child abduction cases where time is of the essence.
“Our couriers are out in neighbourhoods across Canada every day,” Anderson added, “they have eyes and ears in neighbourhoods unlike ever before because of the rise of e-commerce.”
The idea for the partnership came from the employees themselves, who broached the topic during regular meetings with management.
“Our employees, they’ve got a real passion for children, they’ve got a real passion to do what’s right for the safety of our communities and this was a slam dunk as far as they’re concerned. They wanted this bad.”
Anderson also encouraged the public to do their part and subscribe to receive AMBER Alerts on their phones or social media channels.
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