BROWNSBURG, Ind. — The Brownsburg Fire Territory expanded its drone program this week by purchasing a state-of-the-art drone that provides a high-resolution thermal infrared camera, automatic tracking, a laser range finder and automatic flight capabilities.
It also has a range of more than nine miles and a 10,000-lumen spotlight to help crews at night.
"So much more advanced than we were four years ago," said Brownsburg fire marshal Steven Jones. "Having a tool like this makes it easier to manage the emergency incident by being able to collect this data and get it in front of an incident commander."
The new aircraft is a Matrice 300 RTK. The fire territory also has three smaller drones in its program.
Just like any new technology, it takes training and practice. Jones and the deputy fire marshal attended training in Texas last week.
"The screen almost looks like an aircraft screen. It's got a lot of things on it. So, we need to know where to go to turn things on and off," Jones said.
The new technology can help crews with fire, disasters, gas leaks, train derailments and with search-and-rescue missions. There are two remotes, so one person can control the aircraft while the incident commander can control the camera and see what's going on.
Fire scenes
The drone provides an overhead view and gives real-time information on how fire is spreading or a possible building collapse. It can also identify hot spots with its thermal imaging technology.
"We can see a building on fire and maybe the smoke is in the way, but now we can see where the fire is exactly," Jones said. "If I got crews operating on the roof and something goes wrong, we are going to see it immediately."
Recently, the fire territory tested its new aircraft at a construction warehouse fire last month.
"You can see how the heat has affected the steel. With the naked eye, you could not tell, but with the thermal imaging, you can see how steel conduction heat travels through that steel and weakens it," Jones said.
Disasters
When it comes to disasters, the drone can help do a quick survey of the damage so first responders know where to focus their efforts. It can also give exact locations of buildings hit by a tornado, which makes response times quicker.
"Without this [technology], they have to drive the neighborhood and see what's going on. Sometimes the trees are in the way. If you put this up in the air, I can target what the priorities need to be," Jones said.
Search and rescue
The drone can help locate lost individuals through its thermal imagining capabilities. Once that individual is found, the drone can automatically track them and provide an exact location to emergency crews through its laser range finding system.
"If we had a kid on a bicycle that had been missing, the drone could stay with them. It has the ability to follow whatever we set it to do," Jones said.
After emergencies, the drone footage can be used in investigations and trainings.
"This is technology that is amazing," Jones said. "It's available, and public safety needs to embrace it."
The Federal Aviation Administration does have some limitations on when first responders can fly these types of aircrafts, but some of those rules are waived for first responders with advanced training.
The weather can also have an impact on when they fly. However, the model at the Brownsburg Fire Territory can withstand a certain amount of rain and wind.
Jones hopes to keep expanding Brownsburg's drone program as technology continues to advance.
"I want the drone program in Brownsburg to be robust," Jones said. "I want it to be leading here in the Midwest."