LAPORTE, Ind. — A fire department received a new drone after the city mayor won one at a conference and donated it to the department.
The drone, LaPorte City Fire Chief Andy Snyder told WSBT, can be used to keep firefighters and civilians safe in dangerous situations.
“We thought about using it for search and rescue,” Snyder said. “Ours hasn’t been used but others have been used to prove that it can get airborne and find lost children, Alzheimer’s patients, elderly, things like that.”
The drone’s official use, though, has yet to be decided. After being denied a grant request for a drone last year, the department now has one. Now that they have a drone, however, its official use has yet to be decided.
“We may not need it, but when we do, it’ll be another tool added to all that technology has given us to prepare and make sure that our firefighters are safe,” Snyder said. “We want to make sure our firefighters are safe first, because if they’re not, then they can’t help the public.”
The department must still abide by the FAA drone rules; drones aren’t supposed to fly more than 400 feet above ground or within five miles of an airport.