use case | Public Safety

Firefighters’ Monitoring Exercice



Unlimited power



8 minutes set up time



3km coverage

The exercise took place at an industrial site in Port-La-Nouvelle, France, and mobilized various teams, including specialized chemical risk units and a drone unit. The scenario simulated a gas leak on a transport wagon, putting the teams in realistic conditions to test their preparedness and response capability.

A tethered drone enables us to carry out permanent surveillance for several hours. The main advantages are to assess the initial situation, analyze the effectiveness of our actions in the field and enable our teams to operate in complete safety under the supervision of experts in each field: fire, personal protection, chemical risk, protection of populations and the environment.

Deputy Chief Stéphane Bousquet, Departmental Technical Referent RPAS

Download the use case

Solution

SDIS 11 (Aude Departmental Fire and Rescue Service) were looking for a solution that could provide continuous surveillance during emergency situations. Elistair’s Ligh-T tether station was tested to meet the needs of this particular requirement due to its ability to extended a drones flight time to several hours. This resulted in the success of this particular exercise.

The drone transmits its images to the pilot

Information Transmission and Decision-Making

One of the key aspects of a tethered drone is its ability to transmit images in real time to the SDIS central server, enabling rapid, informed decision-making. “The drone enables us to transmit images directly to our central server at SDIS, so we can share this information and query our server remotely” explains Stéphane Bousquet. This feature ensures that decisions taken by the emergency operations command are based on up-to-date, accurate information.

Result of the Mission

At the end of the exercise, a technical debriefing confirmed the complementarity between the use of a tethered drone and a “classic” drone, making it possible to combine continuous vision and mobility. Feedback underlined the effectiveness of the tools deployed, reinforcing the Emergency Operations Center’s ability to manage operations more finely and effectively.

Firefighters work together on a gas leaking incident

The success of this mission opens up new possibilities for SDIS 11, such as forest fire surveillance. In this case, the tethered drone provides a clear, continuous view of burnt areas, enabling rapid, targeted intervention and reducing the risk of fires spreading.

“Tethered drones and conventional drones are not competitors, but complementary.”

Deputy Chief Stéphane Bousquet

Departmental technical referent RPAS