11/12/2025
Did you know...the Lake Villa Fire Protection District utilizes drone technology to assist at different emergency scenes. The DJI M30T was designed for public safety and has some very important uses for us. Our trained operator is able to deploy for water rescues with the ability to drop a flotation device over a person in distress. This drone has thermal imaging capabilities to assist at the scene of a structure fire and locate missing persons. The loudspeaker allows us to communicate with victims until help arrives, and the 6000-lumen spotlight can light up an area overhead. Our operator currently serves as a member of the K9/Drone Search and Rescue Strike Team. This team consists of K9's and handlers from -Illinois (IL-TF1) Illinois Urban Search and Rescue - Task Force 1 and Drone pilots from area fire departments who utilize K9 search capabilities and drones (UAS - Unmanned Aircraft Systems) to quickly and effectively locate missing persons.