Grand Blanc Twp. Police launch drone unit

GRAND BLANC TWP., Michigan (WNEM) – A new eye in the sky will help a central Michigan police department fight crime and possibly even save lives.

The drone unit will give police in Grand Blanc Township an eye in the sky and help fight crime.

“It's a DJI Matrice 30T. The 't' stands for thermal, so it also has a thermal imaging camera so we can use it at night,” said Sergeant Tim Bueche, drone pilot for the Grand Blanc Township Police Department.

Grand Blanc Township’s newest security tool is flying high in the sky.

“Honestly, it started with us just asking ourselves, 'What can we do to help our officers and better serve the public?' It was kind of a natural transition to the drone,” Bueche said.

The police’s very first drone unit officially launched this weekend during the Ally Challenge.

“We used it as a surveillance and traffic monitoring system. We were able to identify hotspots and say we need to close this road, stop this traffic and/or call police. We had a few people who were unconscious, it was hot. We were able to keep an eye on them very quickly and direct medical personnel,” Bueche said.

Bueche said he completed hours of training with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to obtain a license to fly the drone, which can be used in many different scenarios, including traffic surveillance, crowd control and search and rescue missions.

“We have an elderly population and some assisted living facilities. We have a hospital. Sometimes Alzheimer's and dementia patients just walk away. There have been several times in my career where it's taken us hours to find them. Lots of people on the ground. So we can send the drone up in the air. We can inspect an entire field and rule it out in seconds, which can take 30 to 40 minutes. If no one's there, it's a waste of time that we could be using elsewhere,” he said.

The drone is priced at $13,000, but Bueche says it has the potential to double the company's workforce and give them a bird's eye view at a lower cost.

“We have used the state police helicopter when it was available. Helicopters are a huge expense and that is something we could never handle at our level. So using a drone is a cost-effective way to get the benefits of a helicopter at a cost-effective price,” Bueche said.

Bueche hopes the new program will ensure safety in Grand Blanc Township.

“I think that's huge. I think it gives officers on the ground peace of mind that someone has their back, for lack of a better word. And like I said, when we're looking for a lost child or something like that, that's a huge advantage,” he said.

TV5 was told that the aim is to expand the team to include four more operators in the future.

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