Myrtle Beach Fire Department drone team expanding, preparing for CCMF

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WMBF) - The Myrtle Beach Fire Department totaled 31 drone emergency rescues this past year.

The top three rescue situations were fires with eight rescues, Carolina County Musical Festival with 7, and 6 ocean rescues.

The fire department first started using the drones in 2019. The Myrtle Beach Rotary Club donated the drones to the department.

Captain Jon Evans with the fire department tells me besides having normal cameras, these drones also have additional special technology.

They allow firefighters to see heat signatures from both fires and people.

This means if you were stuck inside a building on fire, the drone could help figure out exactly where you were for rescue purposes.

Evans said the drones give fire crews another angle of the scene and help keep firefighters safe.

“It really helps show where not to go if there’s a scene, to stay away from this area and make sure you stay safe. Things like that Or find heat patterns in those types of fires. So, it’s really helped us a lot,” said Evans.

As for the Carolina Country Music Festival, Evans explained that drones are used to map out the area and tents of the festival. It’s a way to help first responders and EMS locate where they need to go when dispatched to a scene.

Currently, the fire department has 20 drone pilots and is looking to add more for the summer season.

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