Does Alaska need more qualified language interpreters?
Some say it's a question worth thinking about, particularly after the AMBER alert last week, prompting a search for a 16-year-old girl across the state.
The alert didn't turn out to be an emergency afterall -- only a boyfriend and girlfriend looking to elope. But a communication barrier with the Hmong mother who called into police got in the way.
The mother didn't speak English, and her 13-year-old daughter translated the mother's words to the police.
Because of that communication barrier, police say they weren't able to pin down the girl's age right away.
APD said they did they best they could with the information they had at the time, adding that it's important to get a potential AMBER alert out as fast as possible.
"Obviously, the best possible situation would be to have officers who speak every language that we have in Anchorage, and be able to send them out," said Lt. Dave Parker with the Anchorage Police Department. "But that's not going to happen in any police department anywhere."
Others say last week's case is a good reminder about the importance of well-qualified interpreteres available to all kinds of agencies all over the state.
"In the same way we've learned to provide interpreting for someone who is deaf, we need to get used to the logistics that are needed in order to help somebody who doesn't speak English," said Karen Ferguson, a state refugee coordinator.
In some instances, police are able to use an Outside phone service called "Language Line" to get instant access to interpreters when they need it. APD has a contract with the service, which bills the department each time they use one of the service's interpreters.
