05/12/2026
Yesterday’s bear incident highlighted just how valuable our UAS (Drone) Team is during emergency situations.
Throughout the response, our drone operators provided officers and responding agencies with a constant live aerial view of the area, allowing crews to safely monitor the bear’s location, movements, and behavior from a safe distance without unnecessarily placing personnel or residents at risk.
The drone was especially helpful in determining when the bear was awake, resting, or moving while high up in the tree, which played a major role in coordinating a safe capture plan and keeping the surrounding area secure.
In situations like this, drone technology becomes an important tool for public safety, whether that be in assisting with search operations, emergency response coordination, crowd monitoring, and helping first responders make informed decisions in real time.
Yesterday’s incident was a great example of how this technology can help keep both the community and responders safer while allowing agencies to work together as efficiently as possible.
