NFPA Journal - January/February 2020 - 15

E M E R G I N G T E C H N O L O GY

SAFER DRONES

A FEMA GRANT WILL HELP NFPA DEVELOP A PUBLIC
SAFETY DRONE PROGRAM FOR THE FIRE SERVICE
By Jesse Roman
FPA will soon receive

GETT Y IMAGES

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nearly $1 million to
develop a free public safety
drone compliance program
for the nation's fire service.
That was the news from the Federal
Emergency Management Agency in
October, which made the announcement
as part of its annual Fire Prevention and
Safety Grant awards.
Through this initiative, NFPA will
provide educational training to responders, maintain a database tracking fire
service drone programs and usage, and
build an online portal that agencies can
use to ensure their drone programs are
compliant with current regulations and
standards.
"As we have seen with NFPA alternative fuel vehicle and energy storage
system training, the fire service is eager
to learn about emerging technologies
that may present new hazards, or in
this case, help mitigate and monitor
safety challenges," said Christian Dubay,
NFPA vice president and chief engineer.

"The new educational resources and
portal will help fire departments
across the country confidently establish and maintain public safety drone
programs."
Having eyes and myriad sensors
watching from the sky has proven to be
a useful tool for a range of public safety
operations, including wildfire response,
search and rescue efforts, structural
firefighting, and more. As a result, an
estimated 900 public safety agencies
across the United States are now flying
aerial drones, according to a recent
study, and many more are expected to
soon follow.
That rapid expansion, however, has
prompted fears that some agencies
might be diving into this aerial future
without the knowledge to build a safe
and effective program.
To develop a program that can allay
those concerns, NFPA and the Fire
Protection Research Foundation will
conduct a comprehensive review of best
practices across the nation and assess

the current level of understanding,
policies, and standards of public safety
drone usage. The process will likely
mirror other programs that NFPA has
already built to prepare responders to
face hazards associated with emerging
technologies, including its successful
educational resources on alternative fuel
vehicles and energy storage systems.
NFPA hopes to launch the new public
safety drone compliance program by
September 2021.
This is not NFPA's first foray into
helping safety agencies adopt drone
technology. Last year, the organization
published NFPA 2400, Standard for
Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems
(sUAS) Used for Public Safety Operations, which details a wide range of
considerations for departments, including the operation, deployment, and
implementation of drone programs, as
well as professional qualifications and
maintenance.
For information on NFPA 2400, visit
nfpa.org/2400.
N F PA . O R G / J O U R N A L * NFPA JOURNAL

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NFPA Journal - January/February 2020

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