Search and rescue missions can be dangerous and difficult, and every second counts. Despite the best efforts of public service professionals who work hard to save lives, there are places and situations that are can put their lives in as much danger as the victims they’re trying to reach.

So what tools can these public service agencies bring into play to help them ensure their own safety and still reach those that are injured and locate those who are missing? The answer may be in drone technology.

Here are some of the advantages of using a mechanical drone system to locate those that are missing or injured.

Cost

It’s worth mentioning that search and rescue missions are expensive. They take a large amount of personnel and hours, and a long, thorough search under those conditions is bound to be expensive.

But with a drone, or a fleet of drones searching for a victim, that cost can be minimized without sacrificing accuracy.

One drone can search an area in minutes that would take human searchers hours to complete.

Post-Search Technology

The video technology used by state of the art drones can allow search and rescue teams the chance to analyze the footage a drone has collected and perhaps spot something the drone was unable to identify.

Video quality has increased in drone technology to such an extent that a team of police or firefighters or search volunteers can get a clear, crisp, bird’s-eye-view of massive amounts of territory so they can find the missing victims faster.

Rapid Assessment

In a situation where fire or severe weather is the concern, a drone’s flight can provide on the spot data that workers might not be able to get. By sending a drone into an area that’s too dangerous for human surveillance, a search and rescue team can collect vital information on the location of accident victims and the best route to reach them.

Quicker Deployment

When search planes and helicopters are required in a rescue situation, it often takes a lot of time to prepare them for takeoff and reconnaissance. But a drone can be launched on extremely short notice, and they can be built to handle extreme conditions like fire, wind and severe weather.

The more quickly a drone can be deployed, the better chance an accident victim or missing person has.

Providing Supplies

It’s not always possible for a victim to be immediately extracted from a perilous situation. Until that victim can be reached, drones can be used to drop food, water, first aid items or medicine into the area that a victim is in.

This is a vital role that a drone can play while search and rescue teams form a plan to reach an injured person.

Monitoring The Perpetrators

People aren’t always hurt or missing because of accidents. If the person responsible for injuring or abducting someone is still in the area, a drone can be vital in tracking their movements.

Rather than send law-enforcement into unsafe situations, a drone can track an assailant if he or she tries to escape, and keep police and other search and rescue workers apprised of their movements in up-to-the-minute real time.

Team Safety

Perhaps the most important reason that drones should be used for search and rescue teams is that they can increase the safety of the very workers assigned to protect OUR safety.

By sending unmanned drones into dangerous situations, police officers, EMS techs and firefighters can get a much fuller idea of the situation they’re about to walk into and ensure they’re taking the safest possible approach.

Other than the safe rescue of an accident victim or missing person, there’s nothing more important than protecting the well-being of those who put their lives on the line to provide these vital services.