MHPS introducing ‘high-risk’ drone use
By GILLIAN SLADE on January 25, 2020.
Insp. Brent Secondiak, Medicine Hat Police Service, holds one of four unmanned aerial vehicles that will now be used locally, mainly in high-risk situations and for search and rescue operations.--SUBMITTED PHOTOgslade@medicinehatnews.com@MHNGillianSlade
Medicine Hat Police Service has announced it will now use drones for increased efficiency plus public and police safety.
“Our intent is to use them for high-risk situations and missing persons,” said Insp. Brent Secondiak. “Lots of police agencies across the country have used them for years, in some case decades.”
The high-risk incidents would include a hostage situation, someone who is armed and barricaded, or a missing person where a search is required, said Secondiak. It could also be used after serious vehicle collisions where there was a fatality and a drone could help to reconstruct what happened.
“It is going to be a fairly limited application,” said Secondiak, who estimates, at this stage, that it will be used six or eight times a year.
Four unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV, DJI Mavic Pro 2s’) were gifted to MHPS from a “government agency,” said Secondiak.
MHPS is aware of the public’s concern about privacy issues where UAVs are used.
“They will not be used on a regular patrol duty on a day-to-day basis, only for these very specific situations,” he said. “We don’t feel that they will be out daily.”
In terms of who will monitor how MHPS use the equipment, Secondiak says they already fall under the police commission and anytime evidence including videos are taken it has to be disclosed.
Secondiak says before using a UAV in the city, approval is required through Nav Canada – a privately run, not-for-profit corporation that owns and operates Canada’s civil air navigation system.
“There is a number you have to call and get a flight plan,” said Secondiak.
There are already federal limits on where a drone can be flown including height restrictions and other limitations, particularly near airports.
Security of the film or photos derived from operating the UAV “would fall under the rules of the criminal code” just as footage from a dashboard camera or one worn by an officer, said Secondiak.
“The drones will be used in an operational capacity and not as a surveillance tool,” police chief Andy McGrogan said in a press release.
For the public who may be concerned that the drones will ultimately be issued as a surveillance tool, it comes down to “trust,” he said.
“I think they just have to have some trust in the police service, that we’re not going to be flying around the city and looking in people’s windows,” said Secondiak. “That is not the intent of the program. We can’t do that under our policy … it is simply to create more safety for us in high-risk situations and more for the public in different situations like missing persons.”
Having a drone to look for missing people in certain areas will be much more effective than having people on foot doing the search, said Secondiak. It means potentially finding the person much more quickly and getting them the attention they require.
These specific UAVs – The Mavic – is called a quadcopter. The name is derived from the four rotors that generate lift for it to fly. They can fly at a top speed of 45 miles per hour, and for up to 31 minutes on a full battery. They have 8 km range. The wing span is 30 cm and they can’t be used at night.
MHPS currently has two officers who are certified to operate them.
