| Updated: 9/28/2012 7:10 pm |
Published: 9/28/2012 7:01 pm
|
Parents who lose their children at the Tulsa State Fair need to keep a watchful eye on the young ones and kids with disabilities.
Tulsa County Deputies report on Opening night, 17 children were reported missing at the Fair and in two cases either the parent did not look for the child and another was age two.
Deputies said it’s not the kids who get lost it’s the parents who lose their kids.
On Thursday night, two sisters couldn’t find their mom for four hours. During the time they were gone, their parent did not go looking for them. In another case, a two year-old wandered off.
Deputies recommend you keep toddlers in a stroller.
Surveillance cameras have been set up at the exit gate in the Kiddie Land area.
This way, if a child wanders off or someone takes a child, they’ll have surveillance video of their tracks.
The Child Lost Center has been manned by the same family for three generations.
Chris Peterson and his wife started working the Center when their daughter was 12. Now his daughter and granddaughter help in the Child Lost Center.
Mr. Peterson said in the last three decades he’s been at the fair he said children don't remember a phone number or they're too young to remember an emergencycontact.
"Write it down a piece of paper. Name and phone number and stick it in their back pocket. That will save a lot of headache,” said Peterson.
Children remember familiar places and leaving the last place you saw them or moving a car could take longer to reunite you with your lost child at the Fair.
Peterson also recommends if you set up a designated meeting place, avoid the Expo buildings. Those buildings close before the Midway.
If you lose a child report it to the nearest deputy.
The Child Lost Center is on the west end of the Midway in the Kiddie Land area.
Deputies do not go home until every reported missing child at the Fair is found safe.
If you report a missing child but find them make sure you let deputies know so they can cancel the search.
They said since 1980, they have been able to locate every reported missing child at the Fair.
