It’s not more Jacksonville sheriff’s officers on the streets, but 36 new aerial drones mean more ways to improve the public’s safety.
That’s just one of the messages the Sheriff’s Office emphasized in introducing its new “Drone as First Responder” Program & Eagle Eye Expansion.
Funding from the state allowed the department to purchase 25 interior drones, 10 exterior drones and one fixed-wing mapping drone to add to its current fleet, the Sheriff’s Office said. The $610,000 helped start the first-responder program a month ago and has already seen positive results.
“Jacksonville is a modern and growing city, and at JSO we must continue to evolve with it,” Sheriff T.K. Waters said. “… Jacksonville’s not getting smaller, it’s growing, it’s growing at rapid rate. So we have to grow with it. So if we can’t grow by bodies and manpower as quickly as we’d like, this is a way for us to do that.”
Unlike traditional drone deployments, the new drones launch remotely from strategically placed docks and can arrive on scene before patrol officers, providing real-time intelligence that helps officers understand what’s happening before they pull up, the Sheriff’s Office said during a demonstration at its offices in the Florida Blue building on Riverside Avenue. Officers control the drones from headquarters and relay the information to responding units.
Drones can be deployed 24/7 to priority calls before anyone can be dispatched, the Sheriff’s Office said. In recent deployments, they reached scenes in as little as 42 seconds, located suspects before patrol arrived and guided officers safely to their locations.
“This isn’t about replacing officers, it’s about giving them better information faster,” strategic communications executive Vic Micolucci said.
Drones have widely proven their value in public safety and offer additional vantage points and situational awareness for the men and women serving in law enforcement, including:
Each style of drone has different capabilities and functions, but Waters said they would be used for calls when needed and not for surveillance.
Other counties and agencies use them as well.
St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office drones
The St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office also recently posted a video of four types of drones it utilizes: the Brinc Responder, Brinc Lemur, Skydio X10 and Fotokite (all about the same size.)
Brinc Responder: Used for patrol functions, it has the quickest start-up time, thermal and payload option where it can drop NARCAN, an AED or a deployable device for the water and has a two-way communicator.
Brinc Lemur: Used primarily as an indoor drone for going inside buildings, under and in cars and alongside SWAT units and has a two-way communicator and a window-glass break feature.
Skydio X10: Used for 2D and 3D reconstructions of crash or building scenes for any photos or videos needed.
Fotokite: Used for drone security, it’s plugged into a power source and can stay up for however long it’s needed and is coincided with the untethered drones to work alongside them.
Scott Butler has been an editor/reporter specializing in public safety coverage for 26 years with The Florida Times-Union. He can be reached at sbutler@jacksonville.com.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: 36 new aerial drones are in action for Jacksonville’s public safety
Reporting by Scott Butler, Jacksonville Florida Times-Union / Florida Times-Union
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By Scott Butler, Jacksonville Florida Times-Union | USA TODAY Network
