OKLAHOMA CITY -- A new tool to help find missing children was used for the first time Tuesday night, and Oklahoma City police say the system performed remarkably well.

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Missing-Child System Works On First Try

The computer program, which is called "A Child Is Missing," gathers information electronically and calls thousands of people who live in the area where a missing child is thought to be located. It was put into action for the first time Tuesday when 10-year-old Derek Johnson, of Oklahoma City, became scared and ran away from a flu shot visit to the Mercy After Hours clinic on Northwest Expressway.

Detective Patrick Stewart said the system got results almost immediately, helping authorities to locate Derek.

"We're very excited and very pleased," Stewart said. "We can only hope that it's this successful in the future."

Stewart said the local system links to a computer in Florida that uses satellite imagery to zoom in on a particular search area. After the search area is located, the computer sends the information back to the local system, which then calls thousands of phone numbers in the designated zone.

Derek's mother, Kimberly Johnson, said she was frightened for her son's safety before the phone calls were made. However, she said she was amazed at the results generated by the new calling system.

"There's so many businesses around and then it's Northwest Expressway with all the traffic ... so many people had no idea where he went," Johnson said. "I was really surprised, and I was glad that it did call all the different numbers that it did because there were a lot of people looking for him."

Police said the system called 2,100 numbers in one minute. The information provided on the automated phone call gave area residents, including several police officers, the information they needed to search for Derek and find him within a few hours.

The program is provided free to police departments across the nation. Company representatives trained officers on how to use the new system Tuesday afternoon -- just hours before Derek went missing.