Summerville, South Carolina, is launching a pioneering drone-first-responder program to enhance emergency responses with real-time aerial data.
Program Details
The automated system launches drones from the Summerville Police annex immediately upon a 911 call, using GPS coordinates to reach most town areas in minutes. It provides live video streams to police, firefighters, and command staff, offering a preview of incidents before crews arrive.
Key Benefits
Officials highlight faster response times by bypassing traffic and operator travel, plus improved situational awareness for safer approaches to scenes. Fire Chief Brent Melcher noted uses like thermal imaging for search-and-rescue in missing persons cases or hazardous incidents.
Technology Features
Drones feature high-resolution and infrared cameras to detect heat sources in fires, locate fleeing suspects, or assess hazmat situations. This marks South Carolina’s first full law enforcement drone-first-responder program and only the second for a fire department statewide.
Privacy Measures
Police Chief Doug Wright emphasized no backyard surveillance, with forward-facing cameras and compliance with FAA guidelines. All flights will be documented, with records available via public requests once operational later this month.
