OCEAN CITY – Officials in Ocean City are developing a program that will allow public safety personnel to employ drones.
In a Police Commission meeting Monday, resort officials began preliminary discussions on a program that will use drones for public safety and enforcement.
City Manager Doug Miller told the commission the town had secured a grant from the Department of Homeland Security to purchase a drone that will be used by trained operators within the fire, police and emergency services departments.
“We do have an existing grant through Homeland Security to purchase a drone complete with camera and infrared,” he said.
Emergency Services Director Joe Theobald said the town is currently working with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to secure the certificates needed to operate a drone.
“We will be applying for a certificate of authorization for public safety for Ocean City with the FAA, which we expect they will provide,” he said.
In addition to acquiring certification, Theobald said the town would also work to train drone operators, inform the public and develop policies and procedures for the drone program.
“It’s going to take a little bit of time,” he said. “We expect to purchase our first drone sometime within the next 90-day period. We have to train the pilots and we want to train them for the needs of Ocean City, and we want to make sure everything is done correctly. It’s a program we will continue to develop. We’ll have ‘X’ number of pilots and the resources will be available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”
In a separate interview, Theobald said the program is in the early stages of development, but public safety officials are looking to use drones, “for awareness, incident response, recovery and things of that nature.”
Ocean City Police Department (OCPD) Chief Ross Buzzuro noted the drone program could benefit the department.
“I think there’s a lot more upsides than downsides,” he said. “We are looking forward to using the drone as a resource.”
In a separate statement, OCPD Public Information Officer Lindsay Richard said the department could potentially use the drone as an enforcement and reconstruction tool.
“The drone program is still in the very early discussion phase and we are still exploring our options when it comes to using drones as an enforcement tool,” she said. “One thing that the police department is very likely to use it for is crash reconstruction. This has become a very common use for drones in law enforcement. It gives officers the ability to see an aerial view of the scene and make more accurate maps and measurements of the collision. There are many other possibilities but that is one that we know that we’ll utilize.”
Worcester County State’s Attorney Bill McDermott, who was present for the meeting to highlight changes within the state’s attorney’s office, said the town would have to overcome certain obstacles in order to use drones. Currently, the FAA prohibits operating drones within five miles of an airport, which encompasses much of Ocean City.
“You have a unique issue with the FAA restriction because you are so close to the airport,” he said. “The rest of the county doesn’t have that issue.”
McDermott also noted the town would have to purchase a drone that could handle lengthy flights and strong winds.
“I know you guys are going to run into battery issues and wind issues,” he said. “You have to have a very nice day in order to launch the drone.”
Councilman Wayne Hartman suggested the town work with other agencies to see how their drones operate.
“It may be a good experience for us to see the capabilities before we make a purchase …,” he said. “I think that’s how we make the right acquisition and learn what works for us and what doesn’t.”
