At first, the police statement said, after she got behind the wheel, two viewers sent her text messages, telling her to pull over before she killed herself or someone else.

One caller who was watching told the police that the woman was driving in the north Lakeland area. As he watched, according to the police statement, she said she was drunk and lost and had a flat tire, but the video feed was sporadic and the caller was unable to tell the police exactly what type of vehicle the woman was driving.

During the live stream, published by WFTV in Orlando, Fla., Ms. Beall repeatedly said that she was drunk and appeared to be asking viewers for directions. She noticed that there were at least 57 people watching and asked, “So where am I right now, people?”

Officers in Lakeland are not provided with access to Periscope through the department, the police statement said. But one officer had a personal account, which officers used to scrutinize the landscape, picking out landmarks to pin down where she was: a street called Carpenters Way.