St. Louis Fire Department tests 4 drones for emergency response

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) - The St. Louis Fire Department is testing four drones that send live video to commanders before fire crews even reach an emergency scene.

The department has used the drones for about a week and has set a 30-day evaluation to help decide whether to make them part of its long-term operations. A drone flew over a house fire in north St. Louis on Thursday morning and gave commanders an aerial view before crews arrived, according to Fire Chief Dennis Jenkerson. He said the goal is to give commanders better information before they put firefighters at risk.

How the drones work

Jenkerson said the department acquired the drones from Skydio, which he described as “100% American technology.” The drones deploy automatically based on incidents around the city, he said. But right now, he said, while the department tests them pilots manually have to decide which calls they deploy to.

Battalion chiefs, deputy chiefs and Jenkerson receive a link each time a drone launches. Jenkerson said the drone usually arrives before the fire trucks and hovers over the scene, which gives commanders an initial size-up, including whether the roof and walls are intact.

Four certified pilots who work for the department can take over a drone’s controls and move it as an incident develops, he said.

From his phone, Jenkerson can switch to forward-looking infrared, or thermal imaging, to see heat coming off a building and which part is affected. He can zoom in and out. Commanders use that view to assess what they are sending firefighters into.

Uses so far

Jenkerson said the department deployed a drone after a report of a person who jumped from a downtown bridge. The drone scanned the area, and thermal imaging helped crews determine where the person was.

“It’s an incredible tool,” Jenkerson said.

Crews also deployed the drone to North St. Louis Thursday morning for a house fire. Drone thermal footage shared by the department showed firefighters staged outside and areas where heat was coming off the building.“It’s just another tool that we could use to protect our firefighters and to protect our citizens too,” Jenkerson said.

What the department is evaluating

Jenkerson said the department tried drones several years ago, and some crashed because of smoke and heat. He said the current test will measure whether the drones hold up to the number of calls and fires the department handles.

The department is also looking at cost and grants to pay for the drones.

The evaluation of the drones comes as the fire department prepares for LA28 Summer Games, where St. Louis will host eight Olympic soccer matches in July 2028.

Columbia, Missouri’s experience

Columbia Fire Chief Brian Schaeffer said his department launched its Skydio drone program about two months ago. The department has two drones and several pilots who can operate them from another location.

Schaeffer has worked with fire department drones since 2016, including in Spokane, Washington. He’s watched drone technology evolve over that time.

“It’s really about increasing our situational awareness and developing that understanding prior to us even arriving,” Schaeffer said. “It really does help in us managing incidents from vehicle fires, traffic accidents, and, and just about everything under the sun that we respond to.”

He adds, the drones help crews find people that otherwise would have to wait for help.

On Oct. 5, Columbia firefighters recently used a drone’s thermal imaging to find a person in a wooded area who had called 911 during a medical emergency. Darkness and dense vegetation made the search difficult, the department said.

“The drone allowed us to take the few people that we did have and concentrate to exactly where he was and be able to locate and rescue him,” Schaeffer said.

He said Columbia FD’s drones fly daily. They were used at a hazardous materials incident just yesterday, he said.

“When you’re talking about risk and people’s lives, specifically firefighters or civilians that may be trapped, that can be the difference between life and death,” Schaeffer said.

Limits and privacy

Schaeffer said weather is a limit. Rain and poor visibility can keep a drone on the ground, and he said crews must still be able to use other tools, such as paper maps and aerial ladders.

He said Columbia’s data is encrypted and stored so it can be exported. He said the department flies drones only during emergencies and for training.

“This is a rescue tool and we deploy them for rescues,” Schaeffer said.

Schaeffer’s advice to fire departments considering the use of drones is to start with a mission need and then choose the technology that supports that mission.

“Really to lean into the beta test, try it out and, and try your best to have it fail,” Schaeffer said. “Manufacturers that are out there promise the world. But you really have to put the technology in firefighters’ hands and in fire situations and try to get it to fail so you know what the limitations of the technology are.”