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Chris Mc Loone |
A year ago, I wrote an editorial encouraging fire departments to begin thinking about how to regulate drone usage on their firegrounds.
I also suggested checking with their municipalities to determine if there were any ordinances covering drone usage in general. Hopefully, by now you have taken some time to consider how to address unmanned aircraft operations in your jurisdictions and haven't had any issues.
Unfortunately, while we have been preparing ourselves on our end, there hasn't been a lot of education on the civilian side. As we know, any civilian hobbyist can walk into a store that sells unmanned aircraft and purchase one. And, we know that on the fire department side, for a municipality to acquire and place drones in service, operators must go through a certification process by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). We know this, but civilians do not. And, probably not many are aware of the air space rules involved with drone usage.
News and videos regarding drones abound. In California, two recent stories involve air tankers being grounded because a drone was spotted where they needed to fly. Another story out of California involves a bill that would give firefighters permission to destroy drones operating where emergency crews are working. And, still another story, this one captured on video, involves a drone capturing footage of a structure fire and firefighters on scene seemingly trying to take down the drone by shooting water at it. It's not that the public doesn't get it or doesn't care, I just think they don't know. The idea of a bill to allow firefighters to destroy drones operating at a fire scene is a bit drastic and sounds more reactionary and frustration-driven. This is where we come in.
Next month we will be visiting schools and opening up our stations to the public during Fire Prevention Week. What better time to put together some educational pieces about drone usage? It should be pretty easy to put together a pamphlet explaining a number of points. First, it should include your municipality's ordinance covering drones-if there is one. If your department has a policy, include that as well. Again, in many cases, the people using the drones don't even realize there could be a problem on a fireground. An example from my area is the use of outdoor fireplaces. Most in my municipality don't know that there is an ordinance regarding outdoor fireplaces. It's tough to explain to residents when we are called that they are not supposed to be using them. Various stores in the township sell them. So, leading off with your municipality's or department's policy regarding drone use will go a long way toward making sure residents know when and when not to use the drones.
Also include an explanation of why a policy exists. Often explaining the rationale behind something goes a long way toward understanding and acceptance vs. just telling a group of people that "this is the way it's going to be."
Don't forget to explain how useful drone coverage can be. I haven't spoken to a person yet who thinks using unmanned aircraft at a fire scene is a bad idea. The information they can gather for us as we try to operate can be invaluable, especially in areas inaccessible by firefighters. The idea is not to discourage people but to explain what they are allowed to do, why they are allowed to do it, and how drones can be very useful tools.
The "upside" for drones is too great for us to want to take them