Drones Credited With Life-Saving Rescues in Northern Ontario

 

Scott Grant, the chief of the Moosonee Volunteer Fire Department, says a $46,000 investment has already saved two lives in the last week alone.

A DJI 30 Matrice thermal drone, purchased by the department just over a year ago, has already flown to more than a dozen incidents in the region, including finding a man lost in the bush on Wednesday night.  

And on Sunday night volunteer firefighters located a woman  – already showing signs of hypothermia – trapped on an ice chunk in the Moose River. 

The dramatic rescue began with a call to 9-1-1 and local firefighters about 9:30 p.m.

"There's a woman, she's out there screaming on the ice," Grant said. "Obviously she seems lost and she's quite far out there." 

A couple of weeks earlier, the ice had begun its imminent, annual breakup, and several patches of open water were visible.

Grant said he contacted his drone team, who met him by the shore of the river. The sun had set, and crew's flashlights became nearly useless in trying to find the woman on the river. Grant spoke to the lady using a bullhorn, encouraging her to remain calm while teams planned a route across the treacherous ice.

"I'm sure it's quite terrifying being out there, especially when it's getting dark out," Grant said. "We could barely make her out at that point. And we can't send crews out on an ice surface without knowing the location of where they're going."

Out of fear or panic, the lady also began wandering across the ice floe, Grant said, making it difficult to pin her exact location down. It also put her in danger of plunging into the icy water.

While cold-water rescue teams and firefighters prepared on shore, Grant deployed the drone team. 

"We ended up locating her approximately 600 meters from shore," Grant said, adding that the drone's thermal camera was able to locate her in the dark, "locking on" her location.

"Once we had her location, we ordered the drone to hover directly over top of the individual. So even though we could not see her, we knew exactly where she was."

Rescue teams then were able to navigate to the point, set the woman in an inflatable vessel, and pull her back to shore.

The entire operation, he said, took about 40-45 minutes, in a situation where every minute counts.

Once on shore, Grant said, the woman was taken to a local health clinic with signs of hypothermia. She has since been "feeling better," Grant said, and is resting at home.

The Drone in Action

Grant says the drone represents a "fantastic opportunity" for search and rescue operations.

"Even if we know where the individual is, let's say, on the ice," Grant said. "We can use that drone and put it up in the air and get a good 360 degree view of what we're going into."

"It definitely gives us a lot more confidence to be able to know exactly what we're getting into or give us a better idea of what we're entering," Grant said. "It gives us a really good ability to plan further a few steps ahead of time."

The drone allows for a full aerial survey of the area, saving hours of work for rescue teams, who typically will search an area by arranging themselves and covering ground in a grid-pattern.

"It really also helps ensure that no area gets missed," he said. "No area gets passed over."

The Moosonee Volunteer Fire Department joins a list of emergency services using drone technology to save lives, or in some cases, investigate crimes.

In 2021, SafeSight Exploration announced they had developed a new drone specifically adapted to operate in underground mine rescue situations, where debris and smoke can obstruct rescuers.

Ted Hanley, vice-president of Ontario Mine Rescue, said a rescue scenario underground presents a more challenging environment in which to operate a drone, because there are many unknowns, and smoke, fire and debris can impede their sensors.

"The UAV [drone] or any robotic technology that's unmanned, being able to inspect an area during an emergency is potentially bringing us back that missing percentage of information that can allow us to make a safe decision on whether to send or not send rescuers into an area," Henley said.

Shared from CBC.CA

Drones for Water Search and Rescue

 

The use of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) or “drones” for a wide variety of operations and businesses has been dramatically increasing both nationally and internationally.  The drone regulatory environment in the United States continues to evolve. New drone capabilities and more effective ways to use these capabilities are constantly being developed and implemented. Drones have quickly become the most widely used tool for many industries. From Police and Fire Departments to agriculture and energy operations, drones have become essential to boosting safety and productivity.

How does this important capability improve the SAR planner’s ability to search for persons in distress? Which drone is appropriate and most effective for a search based on the circumstances of the case? How does the SAR Mission Coordinator (SMC)/Incident Commander (IC) gain approval to use drones for a particular SAR operation? These are challenging questions that must be answered before contemplating the use of UAS in a particular SAR mission.

SAR Coordinators (SCs), SMCs/ICs, State, Tribal, Territorial/Insular Area, local SAR authorities, and volunteers interested in using UAS for SAR will also find important information and guidance in this Addendum in the development, management, and operation of their UAS programs.

What About Drones for Water Search and Rescue

Over the past few years, there has been an increasing interest in using Drones in support of water search and rescue.  Regardless of the type of water from flood, river, swiftwater, coastal, ocean, surf or ice, a drone can be another valuable tool in your toolbox to effectively, efficiently and most important of all safely assist with the conduct water search and rescue operations.

However, there is little evidence that they are used in a structured and strategic manner to best effect. An effective response is essential if lives are to be saved and suffering alleviated.

"In order to realize the true value of a drone’s capabilities in water search and rescue, Drone Pilots and SAR authorities from the Incident Commander (IC) on down need to gain experience by employing drones on actual SAR operations and in training.  Only then will you realize that drones provide another tool in the toolbox for the Incident Commanders that can and will prove invaluable."

A search and rescue drone used by emergency services, such as police officers, firefighters or volunteer rescue teams, is ideal for searching over vast areas for missing persons in need of rescue and in any environment.  Search times can be significantly reduced while limiting potential risk to the party being rescued as well as rescuers. There are many options and benefits to using drones for water search and rescue.

With a lifetime in all water environments to include coastal, ocean, surf, swiftwater, flood and ice rescue, safety, and over ten years in drone operations for public safety. SAS Water Safety and EMMU Aerial’s instructors can help your agency evaluate how drones can be used in the preparation for, and response to all water search and rescue emergencies.  We can also provide assistance with all your training requirements and develops standard operating procedures (SOP) for their deployment before, during and after an event.

The Drones for Water Search and Rescue Course was developed and designed to be taught in a three day format with 1 day classroom and 2 days situational field / flight training, where students already have a FAA Part 107 with basic flight knowledge and experience in land search and rescue. Students will gain knowledge and practical experience in hydrology and moving water dynamics, pre-planning, size-up, site control, scene management, drone platforms and payloads, aerial search techniques, rescue mission support, thermal imaging, night operations and lost person behavior. The course will enable the students to identify clearly their own limitations as well as those of the equipment, so that they will be able to utilize drones more safely and effectively.

Contact SAS Water Safety or EMMU Aerial today for more information on integrating drones into water search and rescue.

Denver Fire Department trains to rescue people from ice using infrared drone technology

 

DENVER (KDVR) — In a single week, the metro area experienced temperatures ranging from the high 60s to below freezing. The shifts created a heightened risk on area lakes and ponds, which can appear to be frozen but are dangerously unstable.

“We may have a false sense of security by looking out and seeing a real thick layer of ice and don’t realize that ice is not that thick” said Denver Fire Department Captain J.D Chism.

Some wrongly believe entering a frozen pond but avoiding areas of thin ice will ensure their safety.

“You go out you think ‘how bad can it be I can make this, I can swim’ not recognizing how cold that water is and how difficult it is if you fall in the ice to get back out” said Chism.

Chism also explained exhaustion quickly sets in as victims struggle to avoid slipping beneath the surface of the water.

The Denver Fire Department conducts regular ice rescue training to make sure first responders are prepared.

FOX31 traveled to Rocky Mountain Lake Park where training was conducted on Sunday.

Divers submerged to the floor of the 30 feet deep lake to practice 360 sweeps beneath the ice.

Crews conducted real-time rescues using tethers.

“It can be very, very tiresome as we’re approaching that victim, especially if that ice is breaking on our approach” said Chism.

The department uses a special drone to gain an edge against time, which is crucial.

“They can go infrared technology just so they can identify something that we may not be able to see with the human eye” said Chism.

Denver Fire performed as many as 30 ice rescues over the past year, many involving people who ran after pets that fell through the ice.

Chism emphasized that the safest thing to do is call 911 immediately.

“We have the equipment and the technology to get there safely and get your pet out of the water,” he said.

Children and pets should be closely watched if living or playing near water.

“The best option is to just stay off the ice” said Chism.