Spokane firefighters have asked City Council to create an exception that would allow them to use drones in the event of an emergency.
If city leaders approve the vote, fire administrators said the drones will respond mostly to hazmat calls, where firefighters come into contact with dangerous chemicals.
By sending a drone into a contaminated area, Spokane Fire said the benefits are twofold. First off, they said it will save precious time because workers will not have to get suited up to deal with chemicals – something that can take several minutes to do.
On top of that, officials said fewer firefighters will be exposed to dangerous materials, possibly saving lives in the process.
Spokane Fire said the cost for a drone is somewhere between $8,000 and $20,000 and most of the costs would come from training the drone’s pilots.
A recent example that officials gave where a drone could have been used was during the chlorine leak at Pacific Steel and Recycling in the summer of 2015.
Had firefighters used a drone in that case, they said the overall investigation would have been much faster.
City leaders will vote on the issue on May 9. Officials said if approved they will come up with a training plan for all employees, all with the goal of using drones in the next six months.