ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — It’s becoming more common to see drones flying over emergency scenes ranging from missing people to house fires.
Most Central Florida agencies now employ a fleet of drones. It could be several for small cities and towns to dozens for the largest agencies in Orange County.
Emergency responders view the drones as a now-critical tool to enhancing their responses. For police, it could mean using the drone to set up part of a perimeter to corral a suspect while they’re waiting for backup to arrive.
Firefighters, on the other hand, can spot hot spots and roof collapses before they endanger more lives.
“We can put them anytime, anywhere we need to in the county at any time,” Tripp Hansen said, as he instructed a new class of Seminole County Fire drone pilots during a training assignment.
Florida agencies first adopted Chinese-made drones, which are considered some of the most advanced drones available at cost-effective prices.
However, Florida banned the use of Chinese drones amid espionage fears, forcing agencies to purchase more expensive American models that can cost up to $25,000 apiece. Some agencies had to replace their entire fleet.
Florida set aside $25 million toward replacing drones, which has been completely allocated to agencies that requested the assistance.
Is the cost worth it? Winter Springs officer Jake Senecal believes the drones more than pay for themselves, simply by replacing the helicopter that used to buzz over his agency’s scenes.
“A flight hour of a helicopter right now, I think the going rate is about $876,” he explained. “So, when [the drone] does 10 hours, which it does every three, four days, we’ve covered years of having a drone.”
Orange County Sheriff’s Office, a much larger agency, said it has deployed its drones on more than 1,100 calls totaling close to 840 hours of flight time since 2024.
The agency – as well as others – still flies its choppers daily, using the drones as an additional tool.
Senecal said he would never want to replace the more expensive tool completely.
“Someone jumps in a car and takes off, I’m not going to want a drone for that,” he said.
Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
©2025 Cox Media Group
