In Utah County, Utah, the Lindon Police Department and Orem Fire Department recently acquired new UAS.

The UAS, which were acquired thanks to donations from Profire Energy, Inc., are expected to offer the departments a number of capabilities while dealing with various scenarios.

“This will be used for traffic accident investigations as well as other post-event investigations within Utah County, search and rescue and documenting Lindon city property,” says Sergeant Josh Edwards of the Lindon Police Department, via the Daily Herald.

“It will allow us to take elevated video and photos which show us the entire scene. The perspective of an aerial photo is much more revealing in showing vehicles in relation to other objects in a scene, tire and skid marks, etcetera.”

The Orem Fire Department on the other hand will use the new UAS in missions for structure fires, as well as for search and rescue operations, and missions involving hazardous materials, according to Ryan Peterson, Battalion Fire Chief for Orem Fire Department.

Orem’s new UAS has three cameras. The zoom camera can identify individuals for up to two miles away and read license plates from over 1,000 feet. The UAS is also equipped with a visual daytime camera, and an infrared camera that can detect heat and the intensity of a fire.

“The biggest impact will be large commercial fires where it may take a while to see the exterior, visible signs of smoke or fire spread,” says Peterson. “This allows us to identify that early on.”

For approximately two and a half years, the Utah County Sheriff’s Office has been utilizing two UAS. Lieutenant Wally Perschon, Division Commander of Emergency Services, says that the UAS are used for search and rescue, crime scenes, serious traffic accidents and SWAT situations.

“They give us a better perspective, help us make better decisions,” Perschon explains. “The biggest benefit is the information that we get and to be able to see exactly what is going on.”

The sheriff’s department reportedly uses the UAS at least two times every month. Recently during the last week of June, a UAS was used to find the site of an airplane crash.