New drone will improve emergency services in Perrysburg Twp.

LIME CITY — Forgive Jim Rodriguez if he drones on about “toys” that are making a difference in firefighting.

Rodriguez, who is deputy fire chief, gave a presentation Wednesday to the Perrysburg Township Trustees, who approved spending $25,738 on a new drone and accessories for the fire department.

“The drone in the world of public safety is just booming right now,” he said. “The applications are endless.”

Fire Chief Tom Brice said the township’s first drone was purchased for $1,200. It was used for training; if it crashed, it wouldn’t be a huge loss, he said.

The drone has been used at the Benchmark restaurant fire and to help locate a missing child.

“It’s a resource for everybody, not just the Perrysburg Township Fire Department,” Brice said.

The township has added two licensed pilots.

Brice and Rodriguez recently attended a haz-mat conference in Baltimore, which sparked their interest in upgrading their drone.

Brice said he also had a webinar that showed how drones are taking blood to ambulance scenes.

A police department recently deployed a drone to a scene where kids had guns. The drone’s footage showed that the guns were most likely Airsoft ones, deescalating the situation.

“I wasn’t actually on the drone parade when this first came out,” Brice said. “But I am now. I think there are a lot of uses and ever expanding number of uses.”

The new drone has night vision and thermal imaging, which can be used at fire scenes and to search for missing persons at night.

Next year’s budget will include money to purchase a spotlight for the drone. Another future purchase may be a “drop device,” that could be deployed into the river with a life preserver, Rodriguez said.

“I think it’s going to be a big asset for us,” Brice said.

State Rep. Haraz Ghanbari, R-Perrysburg, was at Wednesday’s meeting. He has his own drone and is also a big supporter of law enforcement.

“I think it will be a great investment for the township,” he said.

The trustees unanimously approved purchasing the drone from Aerial Viewpoint, Fremont.