Category Archives: EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT

Drone Demonstration Conducted In West Orange

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An Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) drone demonstration was recently conducted at the Essex County Emergency Management Headquarters for the January meeting of the county Chiefs of Police Association. The exhibition was presented by officers from the Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office where the technology is used in search and rescue operations.

Sheriff Fontoura stated that the aircraft system technology would be a key step at enhancing public safety and law enforcement in Essex County in the 21st century.

“These drone systems may be highly beneficial for law enforcement purposes,” Sheriff Fontoura said. “Their ability to carry out search and recuse operations, crime scene analysis, and special operations will continue to allow us to keep the residents of our county safe no matter what the circumstances.”

Animal House/G3 HZ 1/26-2/15

Typically, police UAS systems are fitted with optical zoom or thermal cameras. They are an affordable alternative to helicopter or airplane support, they can be used to monitor crowds for threat protection and they may be employed for advance mapping of an event at a critical infrastructure site. Video taken by UAS systems give investigators another angle they may have overlooked. UAS system are lightweight and average flight time is thirty minutes per battery.

“Based upon what we’ve seen today, UAS systems appear to be very beneficial to law enforcement. They can be used in places where it is too high to climb and they can be used in situations that may prove to be too dangerous to police officers. UAS could be utilized if a hiker gets lost, in water rescue and search operations or in traffic accident reconstructions,” noted North Caldwell Police Chief Mark Deuer, president of the Essex Chiefs Association.

The sheriff’s office and the municipal police departments will individually consider if UAS systems are appropriate and cost-effective for their respective departments.

Sheriff Armando Fontoura (4th from right) assists Monmouth County sheriff’s Detective John Esposito maneuver a police drone at the Essex County Emergency Management Headquarters in West Orange. Also on hand for the demonstration are (left to right) Essex Undersheriff Kevin Ryan, Monmouth Det. Kevin O’Neil, United States Secret Service Special Agent In Charge Mark McKevitt, Essex Lt. John Tully and Essex Dets. Darryl Johnson and Keith Weirzbicki.

https://baristanet.com/2018/01/drone-demonstration-conducted-west-orange/

Building a Drone Program for Public Safety

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For immediate release

 

contact:

Dr. Robin R. Murphy, Texas A&M robin.r.murphy@tamu.edu

David Merrick, Florida State University dmerrick@em.fsu.edu

 

Lost hikers found, swimmers rescued with a deployed floatation device, wildfires located from above. Headlines about emergency responders using small, unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS) are increasingly common around the world, but the need for accurate, reliable information to inform the many decisions that must be made to implement this exciting new technology effectively can be hard to come by, and expensive.

 

Texas A&M now offers a five-hour, 0.5 CEU credit online course designed to enable emergency managers to make strategic decisions about starting a sUAS program. The course is unique in that it is not about flying, passing a Part 107 license, or using mapping software but rather about how to define missions for sUAS, train and equip for those missions, and understand the legal, regulatory, and community support ramifications. It specifically covers the types of missions that different small UAS have been used for, what are the practical considerations in buying a small UAS or working with a drone company, what kind of manpower and administrative impact sUAS will have, and best practices for training and deploying. The course distills lessons learned by the Center for Robot-Assisted Search and Rescue members’ deployments to more than 15 disasters, starting with Hurricane Katrina (2005) and including Fukushima Daiichi, as well as nearly 400 sorties at Hurricanes Harvey and Irma–all at the request of local agencies, and closely coordinated with existing assets. While aimed at emergency professionals, the course offers valuable insights for independent operators looking to serve emergency responders. The course can be taken online, or in conjunction with hands-on classes that are also being offered. The course costs $200, and is the first in an online certificate program being co-developed by Texas A&M Humanitarian Robotics and AI Laboratory and Florida State University Center for Disaster Risk Policy in conjunction with the Center for Robot-Assisted Search and Rescue, a nonprofit organization created to study and implement robotic technology in disaster and emergency response.

 

To learn more or register, see http://teesedge.tamu.edu/modules/shop/index.html?action=section&OfferingID=81&SectionID=81  Contact teesedge@tamu.edu for more information about the course and online delivery mechanisms. Contact robin.r.murphy@tamu.edu for classroom versions of the class or to have a tailored, hands-on class.

 

The Center for Robot-Assisted Search and Rescue is a nonprofit corporation established in 2001 by Texas A&M, and is now an independent entity, the world’s leading organization in deploying, promoting, training, documenting, analyzing, and disseminating scientific knowledge about the use of unmanned systems for disasters. See crasar.org for more information or contact Dr. Robin Murphy, robin.r.murphy@tamu.edu.

North Wales Police launch new drone flying squad

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North Wales Police have unveiled their new weapon in their fight against crime with the launch of their Drone Unit.

Capturing high quality video and still images, police say the drones will be used to assist with searches for missing people, road traffic collision investigations, major crime incidents and event planning and management.

15 police officers and staff members have completed their Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) training which involved passing a theory exam and practical flight test. A number of ‘Drone Spotters’, who are there to assist the Drone pilots, have also been trained across the region.

All officers and staff who have been trained have undertaken this as an additional skill to their everyday duties and who can be called upon if the drones are required.

The two drones, which have police livery and can also be equipped with a thermal imaging camera, have already been used to search for missing people and investigate crime.

Inspector Craig Jones from the Force’s Operational Planning Unit said the drones will positively inform decision making and allow officers to gain vital information, quickly and safely.

The drones have a downlink which means officers on the ground can see live footage captured by the drone in the air,” continued Craig.

“One recent example of this was the fire at the Gateway to Wales Hotel in Deeside (pictured above) where we assisted colleagues from the North Wales Fire and Rescue Service.

“We have been evaluating the drones over the last few months and we very much hope that we will be able to further develop the use of this technology in the near future.”

Drones have been trialled within the force since late 2017 – however an agreement is in place for North Wales that also allows fire and rescue service incident commanders to consider the deployment of drones.

Senior Operations Manager at North Wales Fire and Rescue Service, Stuart Millington said: “The opportunity to see an arial moving image that shows hotspots utilising thermal imaging capabilities is a significantly useful tool in order to resolve operational incidents.”

Deputy Chief Constable Gareth Pritchard added: “The drones offer a highly cost effective approach to help assist our officers. Being able to launch a drone in the air in a few minutes could help save lives and secure vital evidence if a crime was in progress.”

More information about North Wales Police and its use of drones can be found – here. SOURCE