For immediate release
Coquitlam Search and Rescue has partnered with North Guardian UAV Services Canada (North Guardian) to investigate the use of small Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) for the use of Search and Rescue in BC.
The use of UAVs has increased in recent years, with the first verified location of a missing subject in Canada occurring in Saskatchewan earlier this year.
Coquitlam SAR began researching the possible uses of UAVs in late 2012, and contacted Guardian and several local UAV enthusiasts to answer questions and to provide advice. At the same time, a member of the team began building his own hexacopter as a personal project.
Building on this work, Coquitlam SAR is now investigating the feasibility of using UAVs in operational searches. This includes ongoing research into the technical aspects, performance, environmental and regulatory requirements,
Coquitlam SAR manager Michael Coyle states “Based on our experience with these devices, there are several incidents in the past few years where we believe we could have used a UAV. We’re very interested in how they can speed up a search, or provide communications to remote areas.”
North Guardian founder Paul Baur “We’re eager to demonstrate the capability of UAVs and are confident that we can offer a valuable service for Search and Rescue,” adding “the UAV would be a valuable addition to the SAR toolkit.”
North Guardian and Coquitlam SAR have arranged a UAV Demo and scenario in Coquitlam for September 7th, 2013, attendance is limited to media and SAR delegates only, please contact us for more information.
Further demonstrations and scenarios will take place in Chilliwack at the national SARScene conference in October, 2013.
Contact Coquitlam SAR:
Email: media@Coquitlam-SAR.bc.ca
Phone: +1 604 927-3484
Contact North Guardian UAV Services
Email: info@guardianuavs.com
/press August 21, 2013