Orange County Fire Rescue is looking to use drones in order to save lives by having drones send infrared cameras above the fire in order to sense where the hottest areas are so that they can more accurately fight the fire.
Orange County Fire Rescue has applied to the FAA for authorization in order to use drones to help them do their job and just this week they received approval from the county commissioners.
According to the fire department's chief, Otto Drozd III, the drones are able to provide a number of tools that can help to improve efficiency when fighting fires, things like cameras, portable defibrillators, and more.
The drones are helping to take the firefighters out of harms way by having a drone analyze the area and provide operational intelligence that can help them better understand how to fight the fire effectively. The drones they are looking to use weigh less than 55 lbs and they can fly for about 4 miles, going about 40 to 60 mph, with a battery that can last for about 25 to 30 mins.
Just last year, the International Association of Fire Chiefs sought to study how drones might be able to be used to help improve public safety in this way. They found that drones could potentially offer a complete toolkit to fire departments so that they can fight fires better. And it might not be that long before fire departments all over the world are looking to do the same thing.
They haven't settled on a specific drone model yet for the fire department, they are still assessing the possibilities but they have allegedly been looking at drones between the price range of $10k and 20k.
The New York City Fire Department has already implemented drones into their firefighting methods, along with West Memphis, Texas, San Diego, Wisconsin, and other areas. The one that NYC decided to go with allegedly cost about $85,000.
It's no wonder that the drone market is one of the fastest growing industries in the world, when they can go toward helping improve efficiency in this way and potentially save lives.
Pics:
Orange County Government
Trackimo
Sources:
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/breaking-news/os-fire-drones-orange-county-20170427-story.html
http://www.azfamily.com/story/34589544/fire-department-gets-drone