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East Grand Forks council accepts donation to buy drone package for fire department
Summary
Council adopted Resolution 25-04-31 accepting a donation from the East Grand Forks Fire Relief Association to purchase a drone with thermal-imaging capability for fireground and search-and-rescue use. City staff said annual maintenance is estimated at about $500.
The East Grand Forks City Council on April 15 adopted Resolution 25-04-31 to accept a donation from the East Grand Forks Fire Relief Association to purchase a drone package intended for thermal imaging, fireground hot-spot detection and search-and-rescue support.
Jeremy King, vice president of the relief association, described the organization’s fundraising and its past equipment donations to the city. He said the relief association favored purchasing the drone through the city so the city could take advantage of municipal pricing and then assume maintenance responsibility.
Assistant Fire Chief Ryan Swang described the drone’s technical role and operational limits. "The range on it is about 12 miles, but through FAA regulations, we can only fly it within visual sight," Swang said, adding that in practical terms operations would likely be limited to roughly a mile depending on conditions. King described the package’s thermal-imaging capability and said it would be used to "look for hot spots on structural fires" and for missing-person searches in the greenway. The department estimated annual maintenance for the drone at about $500.
Council moved and seconded adoption of the resolution and approved it on a roll-call vote. The donation will be accepted, the city will add the drone to its inventory, and the city will assume maintenance costs.
