Maui citizen journalist describes how his aerial drone helped firefighters
VIDEO COURTESY MAUI 24/7
A police scanner buff and citizen journalist helped Maui firefighters contain a difficult-to-reach wild fire Monday night by providing an aerial view with his drone.
Steve Aheong, who runs the Maui 24/7 Facebook page, said he went to the scene after hearing firefighters having difficulty locating the head of a brush fire to determine how fast the fire was moving.
Maui firefighters said the fire started about 7:20 p.m. off Kahekili Highway, about a 1/4-mile from Makaala Drive in Waihee. Responding firefighters couldn’t determine the exact location of the fire because of the dense, overgrown vegetation, a Maui Fire Department spokesman said.
“Fortunately, an aerial drone operated by a local, social media source was being utilized in the area,” the spokesman said. “The drone’s operator assisted fire crews with the location and subsequent extinguishment of the fire.”
Acting Battalion Chief Lee Theros said fire crews used the drone’s camera to determine the fire’s boundaries and design a plan to extinguish it. The drone’s camera also helped firefighters assess the danger to nearby structures.
“MFD would like to thank Maui 24/7 for their assistance during this incident,” Theros said.
About four acres burned, but no one was hurt and no structures were threatened. Firefighters contained the fire and extinguished it Tuesday. The cause of the fire was undetermined.
Aheong said the fire was burning in an overgrown macadamia nut field and firefighters had to drag about a quarter-mile of hose from Kahikili Highway into six-foot tall brush just to reach the blaze.
A woman living near the blaze called firefighters, worried that the flames would reach her home, but firefighters couldn’t find her house because its distance away from the main road, down an unpaved roads flanked by low-hanging trees, Aheong said.
Aheong showed firefighters the video feed on his iPad from his DJI Inspire 1 quadcopter drone, which cost him about $5,000 with all the accoutrements. The fire department asked him to help since the department wasn’t using its helicopter in the dark.
He said with his help firefighters were able to fight their way through the fire to the head of the blaze to stop its spread.
He drained all six of his batteries, which last about 20 minutes each.
He said firefighters asked him to fly the drone over the head of the fire and hover in place. Then firefighters on the ground hiked toward the drone’s lights. At one point firefighters thought they found the head of the fire, but found they were still about 200 feet off through the help of the drone’s camera.
It wasn’t the first time Aheong helped firefighters with emergencies. He’s used his drone to help them locate surf board and raft in the ocean to see if anyone needed help.
Aheong, an executive in a cleaning company, runs the website with his mother, Carol Aheong. He said he’s been listening to police scanners for about 30 years because he grew up with his mother and grandparents listening to police scanners.
Aheong cautioned drone operators about using the drones irresponsibly, which can create more of a hindrance to first responders than a help. He suggested drone operators approach authorities and ask if they want assistance before flying their drone over an ongoing emergency operation.
5 responses to “Maui citizen journalist describes how his aerial drone helped firefighters”
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I can totally see it’s use in search and rescue operations as well. I wonder if fire departments are already using drones in other states? Saves money because you don’t have to send out human assets until the drone finds what you’re looking for.
good thinking to use a tool already in the air.
but, is smoke that hard to locate?
Would like to see large helicopter-sized drones built to carry large buckets of water to fires, transport ambulance pods, deliver cargo to military bases quickly, deliver bins of mail to post offices, move food and water to devastated zones, etc. I like that we can fly over mountain ranges, heavy traffic, and hard to navigate places with cars. The possibilities are endless. Drones are super!
They have those already. They’re called “helicopters”. And it’s a very bad idea to fly any kind of rotary-wing aircraft over heavy traffic.
this is a tool that needs to in place now rather than later in each fire and police station. the advantages are huge in the field. regular helo support can’t be everywhere at the same time. having each station equipped with drone support multiplies the effectiveness of immediate emergency response throughout every district.
drones can even drop emergency supplies, first aid or communications gear to stranded hikers or injured persons in remote locations.