Located in the San Fransisco Bay Area, Marin County, CA is a very unique community. Like much of the Bay Area, living in Marin County is extremely expensive. In 2015 it was ranked as the 5th wealthiest community in the United States of America with an average income of $158,753. In Marin County an income of $73,300 is considered very low income. With such an affluent community, you can expect to find some of the best public resources due to the high taxes the residents, like George Lucas, have to pay. One such resource is the Southern Marin Fire Protection District (SMFD), the independently operated fire department serving Marin County and it’s neighboring towns of Tamalpais Valley, Almonte, Homestead Valley, Alto, Strawberry, the City of Sausalito, Fort Baker, and a portion of Tiburon.

The SMFD’s 54 employees protect a district that covers 20.5 square miles. Besides protecting residents from fire related emergencies, the SMFD also offers blood pressure screening and medication disposal services, smoke detector replacements, and safety inspections. The department prides itself on the strong relationship it has with the community it serves. Another way the SMFD is trying to strengthen it relationship with the community is through developing a drone program with total transparency. Like many emergency organizations across the world, the SMFD is keen to use drones to help their officers better preform their jobs. For the last 3 years the SMFD has dedicated a team to compiling research on the best drone program to be utilized.

Drones can help police and fire fighters complete life threatening tasks in a way that not only speeds up accuracy, but minimizes risk. They can be sent in to observe a location allowing the officers to make a critical plan before entering a dangerous situation. In an instance like a search and rescue mission when every second counts, a drone can be used to rapidly locate people. If a person is trapped in a burning building a drone with a thermal camera can determine where that person is so they can be extracted quickly. Drones can even be used to put fires out by attaching a fire hose to them. And for regions like California that are prone to wildfires, a drone can help to track the trajectory of a fire allowing officers to get ahead of it before it gets out of hand.

With all of these benefits it is easy to see why so many police, fire, and emergency units are now adopting drone programs. However, nearly each time a civil community organization adopts one of these programs there are concerns raised among the community as to their privacy and safety around the drones. In 2016 residents of Baltimore, MD learned that the police had been using aerial cameras as surveillance equipment without public disclosure. They were being spied on, the public was outraged, the ACLU and more intervened, and the program was quickly disbanded. As drone technology progresses, being able to use them as spy tools is also progressing. But the SMFD has approached this topic with the utmost respect to it’s community.

Before initiating a drone program the SMFD will be bringing their 3 years worth of research to a public city council meeting for approval. Their plan involves a 6 month community education program before even buying a drone. They will hold both social media and public forums to teach the residents everything they can about how drones can be of service to them, while still protecting their civil liberties. Fire Chief Chris Tubbs said, “We want to be wholly transparent with policy and procedures. The first part involves getting community feedback and then bringing it back to the council for another round of feedback.” They want to ensure the public that the drones will be used strictly to follow mission plans. If, for example, part of a mission would mean flying a drone over someone’s back yard, there will be no recording taking place. Cameras will be on to give live feed directional information, but no recording would commence until over a mission target. Another point that the SMFD wants to make known is that all drone mission logs will be made available to the public quarterly to ensure privacy rights are being honored.

Once the SMFD has the support of the community, they will then once again approach the city council to approve a drone program. Once granted permission, the SMFD has allocated a $10,000 budget to invest in a drone program. Councilman Joe Burns feels very optimistic that the program will proceed. “Think helicopter times 100 in efficiency and time,” he said. “The exponential gain is unbelievable. So, I’m excited to have this conversation. Having technology that can get on the backside of an active shooter or know where something is happening in a fire or police situation, it will be beneficial for our community.” Every time a firefighter goes out on a call, they are putting themselves at risk. With a drone at their disposal, that risk can be greatly diminished. But just as important to their concerns for safety, is the SMFD’s respect for the residents they protect. As Chief Matt Barnes said, “We want people to trust that what we are doing is appropriate and providing a better level of service.”

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