VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. — The Volusia Sheriff’s Office has given tracking bracelets to five local families with autistic children.
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This is thanks to a partnership promised by Sheriff Mike Chitwood following the recent drowning deaths of children in the community.
The bracelets were donated to the families by a company called AngelSense.
Chitwood explained this all started after a deputy saved an autistic child from a body of water in Deltona. Not long after that, the bodies of 4-year-old Waylon Childs and 7-year-old Charlie Newton were found in Volusia County lakes just ten days apart. Both children had autism. AngelSense Vice President Robert Torgusen said the bracelets have GPS tracking and the capability for parents to speak to people through them.
“This is my son Tommy, he has autism, he’s nonverbal. Can anyone hear me? Yes, I can hear you, stay with him I am coming to get him. So, it’s really that sophisticated. It also learns the routine of the child so if the child is supposed to be on the bus and deviates, it will let the parent know,” said Torgusen.
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The bracelets are just one of many resources that the sheriff’s office has to help children with autism. Others include swimming lessons and a decal program that tells deputies how to appropriately respond to a child in an emergency.
More resources can be found https://www.volusiasheriff.gov/file/61/Autism-Awareness-02032025.pdf
https://www.volusiasheriff.gov/autism.stml
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