La Plata County recently purchased two unmanned aerial vehicles – drones – and have placed bids on a third, larger device to improve emergency management, be it flood mapping, tracking wildfires or finding stranded adventurers.
“These are really great tools to boost efficiency and safety. It’s an aerial platform, something we don’t have now,” said emergency management coordinator Tom McNamara. “Climbing a cliff, climbing a roof, walking around a fire with a GPS – we can do that from the air with no risk to a human being.”
The DJI Inspire, a 1½-year-old model that costs $3,000 new, was purchased for about $2,000, and the second, a DJI Phantom 4, which came out in April, was purchased for $1,200. Their capabilities are the equivalent of cellphone cameras: they can shoot 4K ultra-high definition video and 16 megapixel still photographs from the air.
The smaller of the two models, the Phantom 4, runs about 30 minutes, while the Inspire has a 20-minute life.
Emergency management expects to pay $6,000 for the third device, a Matrice model able to carry 10 to 20 pounds – enough to deliver food, water, a GPS and radio to someone in distress.
In Southwest Colorado, where the wilderness calls to many, the drones are expected to be a key component of the county’s preparedness to handle the worst and unexpected.
Butch Knowlton, director of county emergency management, said the technology can detail a floodplain, guide someone out of an avalanche path or other dangerous terrain, and get footage beneath ledges and in eddies along rivers.
“We’ve had numerous people fall on the fourteeners,” he said, referring to mountains 14,000 feet or more in elevation. “The drone can get down in the rocks, which you can’t see if you’re flying over at that elevation.”
In some cases, drones can replace helicopters flights, which cost $1,200 to $2,400 an hour.
The equipment is intended to be a cross-departmental tool to also help the county assessor, engineer, code enforcement, road and bridge department, fire protection district and Sheriff’s Office.
“In terms of criminal activity, we don’t anticipate doing anything without a search warrant,” said Sheriff Sean Smith. “But we’d be able to do crime scene mapping with a drone as an investigative tool for reconnaissance.”
County commissioners will hold a meeting next month to solicit public feedback on policy to address privacy protection, data retention and terms of use for the new program.
The county will not launch the drones in a professional capacity until related policy is in place. Until then, emergency management officials certified to pilot the devices are practicing on private property.
Last summer, the Federal Aviation Administration released new rules governing drones under 55 pounds, which loosened restrictions on who can pilot the machines in small, civil operations.
Emergency management has budgeted $40,000 for the program, including training and equipment.
