The Town of Suffield is coming together to better understand the needs of community members on the autism spectrum.
On Friday, the Foundation for Exceptional Children of Suffield’s Project Keep Me Safe highlighted the work being done with local first responders on how best to interact with children with autism in emergency situations.
NBC Connecticut got to speak to members at the event, including the mini ambulance, Blinky.
Foundation co-founder, Sue Davis, has experienced those situations with her son Charlie.
"He ran away from every school he was at here in Suffield," said Davis. "He ran off the bus we lost him at a beach once and we had people watching him.'
While many parents can relate to the fear of a wandering child, Davis and co-founder Jill Caron said there's also the fear of what will happen when the kids are located.
"If a first responder from ems comes in to try and help them they are going to get very defensive," Caron said.
Local
Suffield Police Chief Richard Brown said he was impressed when he was approached with not only the concerns, but also a solution from the community. The police department has already undergone the training with Suffield’s firefighters and EMT’s too follow soon.
"That initial two or three seconds of conversation with her child could let that whole situation become calm and easily resolved, or it could be exacerbated and turn into a disaster," said Chief Brown.
According to Caron and Davis, a big component is also getting the children comfortable with first responders. They said lights and sirens can lead to sensory overload, so the more children are able to comfortably interact with first responders the better.
