The NYPD’s Drone as First Responder program is expanding to equip some police vehicles with drones, allowing officers to deploy them directly from patrol cars as needed.
This initiative, now in its third phase, builds on the department’s existing use of drones to respond to 911 calls, emergency situations and to monitor high-crime areas, according to the report.
Deputy Commissioner Kaz Daughtry said:
“If people are reporting shots fired, reporting an assault in progress, yes, the drone will be arriving simultaneously with a police car”
Since its launch in May, the program has been deployed in precincts with higher violent crime rates.
When a 911 call is made, it is relayed to both police dispatch and drone operators in the Joint Operations Center to enable rapid aerial support, according to the report.
Daughtry shared long-term plans for drones to assist in medical emergencies.
“Eventually, we’re exploring options where let’s say for example in Central Park, someone calls 911 and there’s an overdose. I want that drone to drop Narcan. Somebody called and there is a person having a heart attack on the actual track and field section of Central Park. I want that drone to drop an AED before EMS even gets there so that they can start the process of first aid.”
In the next phase,
“We’re going to have drones in the back of some of the police cars. For example, if we’re chasing a suspect and the suspect goes into the woods or he’s now hiding behind houses, I can go into the back of my car, open up the trunk, take out the drone, turn it on, and then tell the Joint Operations Center to launch that drone. They can launch that drone autonomously from One Police Plaza and help with the aerial search and give us an aerial tactical view,”