The Orlando Utilities Commission gave News 6 a first look at its new drone program.
It comes as thousands are getting ready to prepare for Tropical Storm Helene which is heading towards Florida.
“Over the last few years, we did not have this type of technology. I would also like to say over the last few years we haven’t had storms as bad as Hurricane Ian. That one flooded Orlando and took down trees like it was nobody’s business,” Maguire Mulligan said.
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Mulligan is a research engineer with OUC and was doing a practice test on Tuesday ahead of the storm.
He said this is an opportunity for OUC crews to get results in the aftermath of a hurricane and one of the first steps to restoring power is surveying the impact of downed powerlines.
“The real thing we are looking for is situation intelligence. As we get to that tree or as we get to that flooded road, the issue is no longer how to we get to that problem, it’s what is that problem,” Mulligan said.
And it’s not as easy as it looks. Mulligan said drone pilots have to be on the lookout for wildlife too.
“If I’m flying a drone with a nest nearby it’s only going to be an issue if my pilots go out of their way to make it an issue. As long as we keep that safe distance away, we really are not putting those species at risk,” he said.
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