SCSO's 'eye in the sky' protects boots, and paws, on the ground

A daylight camera from the department's more sophisticated drone captures a wide angle shot of a UNH crowd that had emerged to celebrate after the Patriots' Super Bowl win over the Rams. Inset, the drone that provided the view. (SCSO photos)

DOVER - Members of the Strafford County Sheriff's Office conducted a drill blending old and new technology this past Wednesday when they combined the use of a tactical drone with a K9 unit on the ground in a simulated search for a "fugitive" in the woods behind the Strafford County Courthouse.

The SCSO has two drones, which are both under the command of Skip Christenbury, the department's chief tech officer.

Christenbury, an FAA-certified drone pilot, said the smaller of the two drones was used during the Wednesday drill and helped the K9 unit on the ground find the "wanted" subject while keeping both dog and handler safe.

"The drone can see the suspect from above while the dog is tracking by scent," said Dan Auger, executive director of the SCSO. "So the drone can let the K9 unit know the general vicinity of the suspect and also caution them if a suspect may be hiding up ahead."

The thermal imager of the "big bird" shows a UNH crowd spilling out onto campus after February's Super Bowl win by the Pats.

Christenbury said this "the eye in the sky" can prove a lifesaver in the event a suspect is armed.

The larger of the department's two drones, in which some $30,000 has been invested, comes with a heat sensor that can detect a suspect in total darkness.

Because it's a thermal imager, Christenbury said it works best in cooler, cloudy weather. He said they've detected small herds of deer during nighttime testing.

The "big bird" was also used to monitor UNH crowds that poured out onto campus after the New England Patriots Super Bowl win in February.

Christenbury said the drone can detect human or animal movement a couple of thousand yards away. It also carries two cameras with visual 30 optical zoom.

SCSO personnel prep for a joint drone and K9 drill Wednesday near Strafford County Courthouse.

The smaller drone comes with a single camera, thermal and optical imager, floodlights and even a speaker so it can give directions or commands to a missing or wanted person on the ground.

The smaller drone, which costs about $3,000, is also used for training.

SCSO drones have been used often by police and other first responders, including last summer's standoff in the woods behind the Rochester Walmart, missing persons cases in in Durham and Portsmouth and a recent brush fire in Farmington.

The SCSO is one of the lead law enforcement agencies in the state in the use of drone technology, and Christenbury thinks the demand for that technology is only going to go up.

"We're one of only a handful in the state," he said. "And we've been doing it over a year now."

One of the biggest assets of the drone is they are far less expensive to deploy than a helicopter or fixed wing aircraft yet they possess many of the same tactical abilities.

And drones are very versatile. Christenbury said the smaller drone can provide quick cover and fly in places where a helicopter can't.

"They can fly into a building without risking personnel," he said. "With thermal tracking and optical sensors the smaller one can fly inside a smoke-filled building. It can even fly through a broken window and indoors in a confined space."

And since drone cameras are rolling during an entire incident, they provide training opportunities down the road, Christenbury added.

Auger summed up the drones' technology and capabilities in one word.

"Mindblowing."