Seems like we’re seeing this more and more. Drones are helping in search and rescue situations where sUAS continue to find missing persons. The integration of thermal and FLIR sensors and cameras with UAS allows for search operations day and night and certainly helped in this situation which occurred in Orange County, California.
Officials in Orange turned to a drone when a woman went missing on Monday, May 25.
Family members told police the elderly woman left with her dog on early Monday morning and had not been seen in three hours, according to the Orange Police Department’s Facebook page.
Officers responded to a call at 11:42 a.m. to the area of 5100 East Henley Pl. and shortly called in a drone operator to check the hillside of Via Escola near Weston Street, officials said.
During the search, officers located the woman lying on the ground, concealed within large brush, Her dog was by her side.
The Orange City Fire Department transported the woman to a nearby hospital for evaluation, officials said.
“We are happy to report the missing person and her dog are recovering and are in good condition,” officials with the Orange Police Department wrote in a Facebook post. “Great teamwork by everyone involved.”