The police chief in Chatham-Kent is very happy with his new drone because it's performing exactly how he thought it would.
Chief Gary Conn claims the drone not only saves money because it cuts down on labour costs, it also saves lives. He says the drone has saved at least $10,000 and has been used 45 times over the last six months in missing person searches, finding marijuana in corn fields, collision reconstruction, and training.
Conn says the drone greatly enhances police response and safety.
"The true value is in life saving and how does one attach a dollar figure to a person's life? You just can't," says Conn.
Conn says the drone is a great investigative and intelligence gathering tool.
"For medium and small police services anywhere in Southwestern Ontario, we're the only one in Southwestern Ontario that has purchased their own drone," the chief says.
Conn says he wants to train more officers to operate the drone because it's becoming the norm in policing.
"I see more operators and pilots trained which will reduce the cost of overtime but purchasing another one, no we're large enough to have two," Conn says.
The drone unit currently has six members and consideration is being given to train more officers.