Drone program helps Burlington police rescue missing man
BURLINGTON, N.C. (WGHP) — A high-tech police drone helped Burlington officers find an 81-year-old man who had gone missing from his care facility last week.
After more than an hour of searching, it wasn't officers on the ground who spotted him first. It was a heat signature detected by the drone's thermal imaging camera, leading officers to find him cold and disoriented in a creek.
Police say the man, who had dementia, wandered away from a care facility. Officers began searching but had no clear direction of travel. That's when Matthew Cook, a drone pilot stationed at the department's Real Time Crime Center, deployed the drone, which quickly identified a heat signature in a creek bed about a block away.
'I was definitely stressed. I was definitely worried for his well-being, considering he had been missing for over an hour,' Cook said. 'Didn't know how long he'd been in the creek. It was fairly chilly out, and the water should be a lot colder than the air temperature. I was worried about hypothermia or any kind of injuries he may have sustained falling into the creek … I was glad that we could get him out.'
While officers searched on foot, Cook was piloting the drone remotely using a modified Xbox controller from the Real Time Crime Center.
Unlike most police drones, which must remain within an operator's line of sight, Burlington police have FAA approval to fly beyond visual range, allowing them to cover greater distances faster.
'I started scanning the area using the drone's thermal imaging,' Cook said. 'That's when I saw a heat signature near an embankment inside a creek. I zoomed in, confirmed it was a person, and it appeared to be the man we were looking for.'
Even after officers arrived, they couldn't immediately see the man from the road. Cook, watching the live drone feed, guided them step by step until they located him, pulled him to safety and provided life-saving aid. The man was taken to a hospital for treatment and has since recovered.
Currently, Cook is the department's only full-time drone pilot, and the drones operate five days a week. Police hope to expand to seven-day-a-week coverage by adding more pilots, making sure drones can respond to emergencies at all times.
'This technology is already making a difference,' Cook said. 'If we didn't have it, we might not have found him in time.'
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Man shot and killed in San Jose shooting
(KRON) – The San Jose Police Department is investigating the city's 11th homicide of the year. SJPD said the department was alerted to a shooting around 10:40 p.m. on Friday. San Jose police officers responded to the 6500 block of Camden Avenue. Arriving officers found a man suffering from at least one gunshot wound. Despite paramedics rendering aid, the victim died at the scene. Police dog finds machine gun during arrest: PD San Jose PD said the investigation is active and ongoing. This is a developing story. Stay tuned with KRON4 for updates. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Teen pedestrian struck by vehicle in Waterbury, non-life-threatening injuries reported
WATERBURY, Conn. (WTNH) — A 14-year-old pedestrian was hospitalized after being struck by a vehicle in Waterbury on Friday night, police said. At approximately 6:20 p.m., a 14-year-old ran out into the street in the area of 89 Pearl Lake Road to retrieve an item, when they were struck by a passing vehicle. Wheelchair user fatally struck by car in New Haven They were transported to a local hospital with suspected non-life-threatening injuries. The driver remained on scene and was not injured. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Davenport driver arrested after police find wrecked car, cocaine and cash: Court records
A 50-year-old Davenport man was in custody Saturday after Davenport Police say he drove the wrong way on a one-way and wrecked his car, according to Scott County arrest affidavits. Diondre Wakefield faces felony charges of controlled-substance violation and failure to affix a drug stamp, along with a serious misdemeanor charge of eluding, according to Scott County Court documents. About 11:53 p.m. Friday, Davenport Police saw Wakefield driving a white Dodge Charger in the area of the 400 block of Gaines Street, affidavits show. Officers knew Wakefield had several warrants for his arrest including local from Davenport Police and interstate from Rock Island County, according to affidavits. Police identified Wakefield as the driver. Officers activated their emergency lights and sirens to initiate a stop, but Wakefield 'immediately turned the wrong way on a one-way road and willfully failed to stop, fleeing at a high rate of speed,' police say in affidavits. Police relocated the Charger shortly afterward. The car had wrecked in the 800 block of Marquette Street and it was unoccupied. A K9 was on the scene and tracked southeast from the car. Officers gave Wakefield commands to surrender, but he remained hidden and refused to comply, affidavits say. During the track, police found a clear plastic bag containing 13.1 grams of cocaine discarded in a back yard, along with $42 cash. There was no tax stamp affixed to this, according to affidavits. The track continued south. Police found Wakefield about two houses south of where the narcotics and money were located. He had $755 cash. 'The large amount of the suspected crack cocaine along with the large amount of cash indicate (Wakefield) to be selling the crack cocaine,' police say in arrest affidavits. Wakefield was being held on a total $15,000 bond in Scott County Jail on Saturday. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
