How Are Drones Being Used by Fire Departments?

Unparalleled Access

Drones give firefighters unparalleled access compared to traditional earthbound firefighting operations. Terrestrial firefighting vehicles lack the same access that drones do, especially when operating out in the wild with inaccessible terrain, thick vegetation, and inadequate road infrastructure, or in densely populated urban areas full of high rises and other physical obstacles. A drone’s ability to fly high up in the sky allows firefighters to fly over inaccessible natural terrain and tall buildings to gather aerial intelligence.

Risk Assessment

Drones can reach much higher elevations compared to traditional fire trucks equipped with aerial ladders. Depending on FAA regulations, drones are allowed to fly up to 400 feet in the air. Compare this to ladder trucks which can only reach up to 100 feet. Drones also take much less time to deploy. This allows fire departments to survey the fireground quickly and accurately from the air and to assess potential risks and dangers. This gives commanding officers unparalleled situational awareness and aerial intelligence, allowing them to deploy firefighters and coordinate rescue efforts safely and efficiently.

Thermal Imaging

Between thick clouds of smoke billowing from the fireground and physical obstructions like buildings and tall trees in the environment, visibility is always a challenge for firefighters on the ground. Thankfully, drones outfitted with high-definition infrared (IR) cameras give firefighters thermal imaging capabilities to see what the naked eye could not. This enables them to monitor hotspots, identify deployed personnel, and locate people trapped inside structures despite the lack of visibility.

Remote Monitoring & Coordination

Drones allow firefighters to relay high-definition video intelligence of the fireground back to central command in real time. This facilitates improved coordination with other disaster response agencies and first responders on scene. The footage and data gathered during emergency response incidents can also be used as evidence, for after-action analysis, and incorporated into future training materials.

Emergency Deliveries

In certain emergency situations, victims may be trapped within a burning building or other remote, unsafe, and otherwise inaccessible locations. Often, these victims may require time-sensitive emergency care and cannot wait until firefighters and other first responders have contained the fire and create a path to them. Fortunately, fire departments can use drones to deliver emergency supplies and equipment such as Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) to these victims while firefighting and rescue efforts are underway.

Why Are Drones Useful for Fire Departments?

Higher Reach

Drones can reach much higher elevations compared to conventional fire trucks equipped with aerial ladders.

Rapid Aerial Surveillance

Drones allow fire departments to begin surveying the fireground within moments of arriving on scene, and to do so much more comprehensively from the air.

Accessibility

Drones allow firefighters to monitor fires in inaccessible terrains or other hard-to-reach locations.

Search & Rescue

Drones can be equipped with thermal imaging cameras to help identify hotspots, victims, and rescue crews otherwise invisible to the human eye when the fireground is engulfed in smoke. They can also be outfitted with floodlights to aid in nighttime rescue operations.

Cost Savings

As drones provide fire departments significant technical and safety benefits, they also provide notable cost savings compared to other methods. Deploying fire trucks and personnel may be costly, and drones help to offset part of that cost when fighting emergency fires.

Damage Assessment

Drones are helpful in surveying the fireground during and after a fire to assess damage, record the spread of the fire, and help locate missing persons. In addition to being valuable evidence, information recorded by the drones during firefighting operations can also be used to create training materials.

In September 2021, after intergovernmental collaboration and detailed policy revisions, the 45-day trial of Medicine from the Sky finally took shape.

The Medicine from the Sky programme in India was commissioned at the India Economic Summit in 2019 under the chairmanship of K. T. Rama Rao, Telangana’s Minister for Information Technology, Industries & Commerce, and Municipal Administration & Urban Development (MA&UD), and Jayesh Ranjan, Principal Secretary to Telangana Government, Information Technology, Electronics and Communications (ITE&C) and Industries & Commerce (I&C). The programme was aimed at using drone technology to extend urban-grade healthcare to the remotest areas and ensure that “nobody is left behind”. Since a number of stakeholders had a secondary view of the technology and only a limited perception of its benefits, one of the goals was to measure programming and confidence-building in the ecosystem.

The focus was on three fronts:

1.Technology – Overall maturity of the technology and its capacity to withstand the conditions of the last mile, especially in remote areas.

2.Policy – Alignment with policy-makers in articulating the case that drones can be operated safely and securely for social impact.

3.Community – Alignment with members of the community, especially beneficiaries (rural citizens), consumers (healthcare workers), implementers, experts and decision-makers, when strategizing for a seamless drone delivery programme.

We are delighted and proud to announce that, Casca E-Connect Private Limited has received authorization certificate for Research & Development as per the Rule 58 of UAS Rule 2021. Many thanks to R P KASHYAP Sir, D. C. Sharma Sir and Civil Aviation Department Of India.