A 911 drone system is taking its first flights in Manatee County this week. As the first of its kind, the system aims to speed up emergency response times and save lives.
The effort is a collaboration between Manatee County, Tampa General Hospital and Archer First Response Systems.
“This aircraft is on standby, ready for deployment at a moment's notice," said Gordon Folkes III with Archer Response Systems.
Folkes said the drone will deliver life-saving tools to 911 callers within minutes. The drone is equipped with a defibrillator, Narcan and a tourniquet.
“If someone calls 911, the call taker in the emergency communications center is able to request deployment,“ Folkes said.
The drone has a home base system at either an EMS or fire station. When a 911 call comes in, the dispatcher will determine if any of these life-saving tools are needed. If they are, the caller will deploy the drone.
“They’ll say, 'Okay, we are sending you one, it will be in your driveway in a minute and a half,'” Folkes said.
The drone will drop the equipment in the driveway or location of the emergency. Then, the 911 caller can use the life-saving tools on the person in distress.
“So these devices we carry are all designed for someone whose never been trained to use them to be able to use them," Folkes said.
He said with cardiac arrest or an overdose, time is a matter of life or death. Folkes explained that if a person can get Narcan or a defibrillator even a minute before paramedics arrive, it could be the difference that saves a life.
The drone system home base is strategically chosen based on overdose and cardiac arrest data.
The pilot program will roll out in Manatee County in two phases. They anticipate to make about 100 emergency flights in the first year.
This is a Florida-based company, but Archer First Response Systems hopes to expand the service nationwide.
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