A drone video has been released showing the aftermath left by Hurricane Dorian that hit the Bahamas earlier this week. The video gives us an insight into the damage and destruction caused by the deadly hurricane as the cleanup and restoration process begins.
Earlier today, DJI sent out this message to all rescue and recovery drone operators urging them to get ready and prepare now for post-storm operations. In the same statement, the Chinese drone maker warns all other drone pilots to follow the FAA guidance and to not fly in affected areas. You do not want to be that person that is responsible for halting a rescue operation, because you thought it was a good idea to get some aerial footage of the aftermath of Hurrican Dorian. Drone pilots who interfere with emergency response could face fines as high as $20,000.
During a drone demonstration by local fire and police departments in Ohio, a demo flight turned into a real search and rescue operation when a father asked Fire Chief Brian Miller and Police Cpl. Justin Alloway to help locate his nine-year-old daughter. It all happened during the Fourth Friday event last week in Westerville when thousands of people crowd the streets of the Ohio town. Hannah, the missing girl, had walked ahead of her family and the father couldn’t find her anymore. Luckily, the DJI M210 drone located the girl within minutes and reunited the family. Drones for good!
Finding lost hikers in a forest can be very difficult as the thick canopy prevents helicopters and manned aircraft from getting a glimpse of what is down below. Using drones may be difficult as well as flying in between the trees, GPS signals may be very difficult to pick up. This is where autonomous fleets of drones outfitted with LIDAR systems may come to the rescue of lost hikers, as presented by MIT researchers at the International Symposium on Experimental Robotics conference.
The Brecon Mountain Rescue Team in Wales, England will start testing drones and sonar in their rescue operations after yet another record year of callouts. One of the reasons for the increase in callouts is that exploring the outdoors is getting increasingly more popular. The Brecon MRT has recruited more volunteers and they hope, that in addition to the new drone technology, this will lead to more positive outcomes when the team gets called into action.
Last week we reported about a drone patrol program being started in Perth, Australia. Today we learn that drones will be used to patrol the beaches in the far north of Queensland after a series of crocodile attacks. Fatal crocodile attacks have led to Surf Lifesaving Queensland to deploy a drone to spot for crocodiles in swim areas. Ever since crocs were found in stinger enclosures, three beaches have been closed.
As we go into the winter here in New York, summer is just getting started in Perth, Australia. 7 News Perth reports that this year the lifeguards will have a new member on their team, a drone. In Surf Life Saving colors these drones will help the lifeguards patrol the beach, looking for swimmers in need and to spot any sharks nearby. Both swimmers and sharks are very hard to spot from the beach, but from a drone’s point of view, they are clearly visible in the ocean water.
With all the drone incidents that are reported, it is easy to forget that drones can also be used in a very positive or even life-saving way. Take this story for instance where an 82-year old lady was reported missing in Randolph County, North Carolina. Somehow she ended up in a cornfield and it is very easy to get lost in one of those. Randolph County NC Sheriffs Office brought in a drone to assist in the search. The drone provided a straight-down perspective and as you can see in the video below, that makes it much easier to spot people. It took less than 25 minutes to locate her and bring her safely back to her family.
A couple from Marshfield, WI is thankful to be reunited with their dog that had gone missing in the marshes for three days. Mollie and Steve Schrodi told NewsChannel 7 how last Saturday a routine trail walk in the McMillan Marsh with their Wirehaired Pointing Griffon Jax took a turn for the worse.
The Herald Bulletin reports that when a Summitville teenager recently ran away from home, the Madison County Emergency Management Agency officials brought in a DJI Inspire drone outfitted with a thermal infrared camera to aid in the search.
Within minutes of arriving at the scene, the department’s new unmanned aerial vehicle was flying through the air in search of the youth. Todd Harmeson, deputy director of EMA, was piloting the Inspire drone.
