CRANSTON, R.I. (WPRI) — Linda DaLomba's whereabouts were unknown for four days before she was discovered curled up in the backseat of a parked car. The 45-year-old woman, who's autistic and nonverbal, vanished last Wednesday while her caregiver was visiting a nail salon, according to police. In vestigators believe DaLomba got out of the car in the nail salon parking lot and walked down the street to the unlocked vehicle, where she remained until she was found Sunday afternoon. DaLomba's disappearance triggered an extensive citywide search, and detectives began fearing the worst as her caregiver continued to provide them with conflicting statements regarding her potential whereabouts. RELATED: Caregiver was at nail salon when autistic woman went missing Thankfully, a mechanic with the Cranston Fire Department went outside to jumpstart his family friend's car and found DaLomba laying down in the backseat. He decided to call the police after hearing about DaLomba's disappearance on the news. "At first I thought, 'There’s no way it’s that missing lady,'" Savong Sam recalled. "But it ended up actually being her." Now that DaLomba is safe and sound, Rep. Christopher Paplauskas, R-Cranston, is calling for the creation of a notification system that would assist officers in future searches for missing individuals with intellectual disabilities. "We have AMBER Alerts for children and we have Silver Alerts for seniors," Paplauskas said. "This would close that gap in public safety, which we seemed to realize exists over the course of the last week here in Cranston." Paplauskas said the idea originally came from Cranston Mayor Ken Hopkins, who mentioned it while honoring Sam for his heroic efforts earlier this week. "I think this is an opportunity, and I learned a long time ago that out of tragedies come opportunities," Hopkins said, adding that he actually got the idea from Cranston Police Col. Michael Winquist. "I think it's something that the state needs, and I think it's a great idea." Paplauskas said the notification system would be called the "Linda Alert," and would be activated for missing individuals who have disabilities. SEE ALSO: Cranston honors man who found missing autistic woman He added that other states have already implemented similar notification systems, including Florida, Georgia, New York and Texas. "Hopefully we can do that here in Rhode Island too," he said. Though Paplauskas has not yet introduced legislation to create the new notification system, he said the idea already has bipartisan support. He has also proactively reached out to the Rhode Island Emergency Management Agency, which would be responsible for creating and maintaining the proposed notification system. "I want to act fast on this," he said. "Once the I's are dotted and the T's are crossed, I'm going to submit it." DaLomba's caregiver, 43-year-old Roberta Gerard, has since been arrested and charged with abuse, neglect or exploitation of an adult with severe impairments, as well as falsely reporting a crime and obstruction of an officer in the execution of duty. Gerard faced a judge Monday and was released on $5,000 surety bail pending her next court date, which is slated for June. NEXT: Caretaker charged with lying to police after woman went missing Download the WPRI 12 and Pinpoint Weather 12 apps to get breaking news and weather alerts. Watch 12 News Now on WPRI.com or with the new 12+ smart TV app. Follow us on social media:                     Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Daily Roundup SIGN UP NOW ...read more read less