Darkness is no longer a disadvantage for the St Lucie County Sheriff’s Office. The proof is caught on camera in a late night rescue earlier this month.
“I found her within two minutes of being on scene,” said pilot Jeffery Shoner.
Thanks to new state of the art technology, the aviation unit was able to use its near HD inferred camera to spot the lost woman’s body heat in the middle of a large wooded area.
“It is a game change,” said Sgt. Jimmy Adams who is in charges of the Sheriff’s Office aviation unit.
During the day, you could say this eye in the sky now has near 20-20 vision. The long range camera and GPS is so precise, they wont even tell us how far away they can see.
“This stuff, we can see with a lot more detail and we know what it is that we’re looking at,” said Adams.
It is technology that has brought efficiency and precision to law enforcement, especially when it comes to tracking a suspect.
A perfect example was the video released earlier this week, when Martin County Sheriff’s Aviation Unit helped track and capture a suspected gunman.
“It’s our number one mission, to support that deputy on the ground,” said Adams.
For St Lucie’s Aviation Unit, they call this latest technology "a force multiplier” from the air.
The recent upgrades to St. Lucie County’s helicopters were paid for by a federal grant. The benefit will reach beyond St. Lucie County since the Aviation Unit supports more than 18 different agencies.