DEC’s 22-drone fleet dispatched to help hurricane victims

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has launched a fleet of 22 drones that will offer a bird’s-eye view during forest fires, and search-and-rescue missions at a fraction of the cost of a helicopter, the agency has announced.

The new technology, known as unmanned aerial vehicles, or UAVs, can also be used to document endangered species, locate illegally dumped hazardous substances and reconstruct accident scenes, the agency said.

“The use of drone technology will help us do our jobs better and faster while saving taxpayer dollars,” DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos said in a statement on Sept. 25. “We live in a changing world with technological advances being made at an exponential rate, and UAVs give us a safe and efficient way to collect and analyze data, assess threats to the environment, and quickly respond to emergencies.”

During natural disasters, infrared sensors can quickly locate stranded people who might need medical attention, reducing hazards for first responders and potentially saving lives. They can also be used to access “areas that are hard to reach on the ground, like swamps or marsh areas or changes in elevation,” said DEC’s aviation coordinator Scott McDonnell.

Two of the state’s drones have been deployed to Texas to assist in the Hurricane Harvey recovery effort, and Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo dispatched three to Puerto Rico to aid the New York Power Authority to restore the power grid and accomplish other missions there.

On Long Island, the DEC has already used drones to document a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers project to dredge sand from Fire Island Inlet and use the spoils to replenish nearby dunes damaged during superstorm Sandy in 2012. The DEC also used the aerial vehicles to map tree damage caused by the invasive southern pine beetle in Suffolk County using automated software that searched for irregular color patterns among trees.

The technology allowed that process to be completed in hours, rather than days via a ground survey, saving labor costs, McDonnell said.

The fleet has cost $420,000 over the past two years, but DEC spokesman Benning DeLaMater said it has already saved the department $250,000 since it began using drones in December 2016.

“We anticipate in the next several years that it will save the department millions of dollars,” he said.

The DEC is not the only governmental entity to invest in the technology.

The Suffolk County Police Department announced earlier this year that it planned to purchase a pair of drones to offer an aerial view of crime scenes and emergency situations. It is not clear whether the department has moved forward with that plan.