La Crosse, Wisconsin, introduces drones for water rescues
The drones will be used to locate people in the Mississippi River, and to deploy flotation devices to keep them alive while a rescue boat is deployed
Police in La Crosse, in the US state of Wisconsin, have announced plans to use drones to support their water rescue operations along the Mississippi River.
The drones, which will be operated by their water rescue unit, will be used to locate individuals in distress, and deliver an automatically inflating flotation device to provide assistance.
The exact model of drone being used for the program was not specified, but the uncrewed aircraft are water-resistant, GPS-capable, and able to fly for up to 35 minutes on a single charge.
The program is expected to improve the survival rate of water rescues, allowing the La Crosse Police Department to deliver an effective initial response that can improve the immediate situation prior to a rescue boat’s arrival.
Fort Worth Police Department, in the US state of Texas, recently announced plans for its own new drone-as-first-responder (DFR) program.
Oliver Cuenca
Oliver Cuenca is a Junior Editor at AirMed&Rescue. He was previously a News and Features Journalist for the rail magazine IRJ until 2021, and studied MA Magazine Journalism at Cardiff University. His favourite helicopter is the AW169 – the workhorse of the UK air ambulance sector! He also led the creation of Waypoint: The AirMed&Rescue podcast, serving as its Production Editor and co-host.