ByDal Cannady|May 19, 2021 at 3:40 PM EDT - Updated May 19 at 3:40 PM
BULLOCH COUNTY, Ga. (WTOC) - Investigators in Bulloch County say their drone system gives them many of the features of a helicopter, but quicker and cheaper.
The Bulloch County Sheriff’s Office worked for more than a year to put together a set of seven drones and put investigators through the FAA training to use them. They believe they can use them for everything from a lost child or Alzheimer’s patient to a fugitive on the run.
Drone models include night vision to allow them an “eye in the sky” even in the dark.
They have enough of them for the trained investigators to have them in the car at all times for an emergency.
“When we have people on the ground, boots on the ground, we can get one there and up in 30 minutes compared to an hour and a half for a helicopter,” Bulloch County Sheriff’s Office Investigator Will Sims said.
They say the smaller models could even fly through a building in a hostage situation and locate suspects and victims to sort out who is who.
They say they covered the cost of all this almost entirely with seized drug money and SPLOST funds.
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