Drone with thermal camera locates missing 84-year-old woman

In Nijkerk, The Netherlands, a missing, 84-year-old woman was found in a field with help from a drone outfitted with a thermal camera. Volunteers and two helicopters were used in the Search and Rescue mission, but it took a drone to successfully locate the person as the evening set in.

Missing 84-year-old woman found with help from a drone with a thermal camera

The woman was last seen in the town center in the early afternoon. Once she was reported missing a large scale search and rescue mission was started as there were concerns about her health and wellbeing. Through messaging apps a large number of civilian volunteers were asked to participate in the search, which also included two helicopters.

As part of the search multiple drones were deployed, one of which is outfitted with a thermal camera. The thermal imaging capabilities of that drone proved to be critical as the missing 84-year-old woman was located in a field.

The woman showed early signs for hypothermia and was taken to a local hospital for medical observation. A spokesperson from the fire department said that the woman was in good shape considering what had happened to her, reported dronewatch.nul.

We have no information on the kind of drone that was used in this search and rescue mission. A popular drone that is used by many fire and Police departments in the U.S. is the DJI Mavic 2 Enterprise Dual. Parrot also makes a drone with a thermal camera, the Anafi Thermal, as well as this version that is not for sale to the public.

What do you think of drones with thermal cameras being used for good? Should all fire and police departments have those as part of their standard toolkit? Let us know in the comments below.

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Photo: Damian Ruitenga (NewsUnited)