By Andrew Ruben
At the crossroads of I-25/I-80 and the Union Pacific/BNSF railways, Laramie County Fire Authority (LCFA) has primary responsibility to respond and serve fire and medical calls for more than 1,100 square miles in Wyoming’s most southeastern county – that’s nearly the size of Delaware. To cover fire and medial calls over these hundreds of square miles of prairie and forestland, plus a large wildland-urban interface, large industrial structures, sprawling ranch and ranchettes, LCFA has invested in several technologies to be more effective and efficient in response efforts. One such technology – drones.
In my role as an LCFA volunteer and FAA Part 107 UAS operator, I brought the drone technology to LCFA, quickly demonstrated its capabilities, and earned the support and encouragement of LCFA Chief Caughey and Deputy Chief Manny Muzquiz. “Our mindset is rooted in being a progressive organization, so adding drone technology into our operations was a very natural fit,” says LCFA Fire Chief Jason Caughey.
The LCFA experience
Muzquiz and I joined forces to develop LCFA’s Drone Program, and LCFA’s first drone launched in the spring of 2019. The program includes the equipment, but also trained, proficient and safe drone operators. In the early days, I was the only FAA Part 107 operator, so LCFA pursued and received the FAA’s Public Aircraft Operator designation. This was a stopgap measure to allow LCFA to legally conduct drone flights without licensed Part 107 operators. Additionally, LCFA developed internal policies, a training program, completed required monthly reports to the FAA and managed a high level of administrative responsibilities for a small number of drone flights. We spent a lot of time reporting and doing paperwork for the few flights that were occurring at this time. There had to be a better way.
Beginning in 2020, many fire and law enforcement agencies around the country began to recognize the constraints with FAA’s Public Aircraft Operator designation and shifted their position toward establishing an internal cadre of Part 107 operators. LCFA followed suit and currently conducts all drone operations under the FAA Part 107 regulations, using Certificate of Authority, Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability (LAANC) and related processes to legally fly drones in controlled and uncontrolled airspaces.
Currently, the LCFA team includes five Part 107 operators – a small team of capable and available UAS pilots. This has positioned LCFA’s drone team to serve as a UAS expert throughout the region. In fact, many other fire and law enforcement agencies reach out to LCFA when a drone is needed. Some of the mutual-aid calls that LCFA drones have assisted with include structure and training fires within city limits; search and surveillance operations initiated by city, county and state law enforcement; and orthomosacic mapping needed for motor vehicle crashes and other law enforcement actions.
Another component of LCFA’s drone program is the variety in the equipment that has been procured and placed in service. Our first drones were early generation, “pro-consumer” versions with visual cameras only. I remember some clunky integrations I worked on to incorporate early thermal sensors into those drones. Currently, we have five drones and will continue to add more to our fleet. The fleet includes two untethered drones with advanced thermal capabilities, one tethered system (not requiring Part 107 licensing) providing 24/7 visual and thermal operations, one trainer drone and a small FPV system that is perfect for complex and dangerous assessments into trenches and other confined spaces. All of the LCFA drones have some capabilities to either livestream or “cast” the video feed into other systems, allowing the incident commander and other command staff see any call where a drone is deployed in real time. The LCFA drones are also regularly used during regularly scheduled training events where the training division can use the video and photos as a tool to develop firefighter skills and tactics.
Muzquiz underscored the vast change in mindset over the years: “Our drone program has evolved from a tool that was sometimes considered too rarely, or too late to be effective, to now as a highly valued, integrated element of our command team and first-due crews to activate quickly.”
LCFA deployed a drone during this structure fire and video was transmitted to the incident command officer where he directed assets and water to the hottest areas. This helped LCFA fight the fire efficiently and conserve water resources.
Photo/Andrew Ruben
LCFA Firefighter and Drone Program Manager Andrew Ruben with LCFA’s DJI Matrice 30T after completing a night mission. For this event, crews trained in a simulated open water recovery event at night.
Photo/Andrew Ruben
A portion of the Happy Jack Fire in Laramie County. This was a 7000+ acre fire and drone images were used for the investigation and stakeholder relations. Perimeter mapping was completed by manned aircraft provided by the Wyoming Air National Guard
Photo/Andrew Ruben
How to launch your own drone program
I urge all fire agencies to consider ways to add drone technology into their normal operations, understanding that adding drones into your system will require additional time and financial resources.
Where to begin, step by step:
- Regulations: Review the FAA website on UAS regulations and how you will comply with the regulatory aspect of working in the national airspace. The Part 107 option provided LCFA the greatest amount of flexibility and reduced administrative burden.
- Funding: For equipment, look at your funding options. Do you have money in your budget to buy a drone, are there businesses or individuals that may donate money toward the purchase of a drone, or is there an entity that may simply donate a drone to your department? Additionally, grants could be another opportunity to help with procuring equipment.
- Equipment: When it comes down to selecting the right drone to get started, make sure that you are buying a high-quality GPS-enabled drone. A high-resolution camera with thermal and zoom capabilities is best, as you will likely be able to keep this as a useful, value-added tool for a longer period.
- SOPs: As your department begins to create a drone team, make sure to create or update agency-specific standard operating procedures (SOPs) that address who is authorized to operate the equipment, when/how are “visual observers” to be used, who and how the equipment will be maintained, plus what the drone operator should do during or after a unexpected occurrence, such as a lost communication link, unplanned landing or other safety-related event.
Program success
Incorporating drones into the LCFA response system has benefited our community and our partners, and has both deepened and strengthened our response capabilities. Drones have enabled us to better understand fire behavior, and we’ve been able to adjust our tactics accordingly. Additionally, drones have expanded our capabilities to assist mutual-aid partners with search and rescue calls and other law enforcement efforts.
Final thoughts
I encourage other fire service leaders to incorporate drones into your systems. While there are financial and human commitments that need to be considered to start a drone program, using advanced technology like drones offers news opportunities for improving and expanding your fire department’s capabilities. Starting up a drone program in your organization may also be a way to discover interest and talents of existing staff, or it may be a great way to recruit new staff and grow your membership roster.
There are excellent models that can jumpstart your efforts and support a move from concept to operations in a relatively short amount of time. Contact LCFA Fire Chief Jason Caughey, Manny Muzquiz or myself to learn more about the LCFA drone program.
MORE | Firefighting drones: What’s new and what’s next?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Andrew Ruben is a firefighter/EMT with the Laramie County Fire Authority where he serves as the drone program manager. He is an FAA Part 107 operator as well.