A woman was located safe in Dieppe thanks to RCMP and drone technology.

RCMP says her family believed she was in distress after getting lost in the woods along the Petitcodiac River at around midnight on August 25th.

Police Dog Services was called to the scene but had difficulty locating the woman. RCMP then deployed the Remotely Piloted Aerial System (RPAS) and within minutes, they were able to locate the missing woman on the infrared camera and she was transported to the hospital.

The RPAS Program is used by the RCMP to capture overhead images and videos to support RCMP operations. The RPAS is a small, power-driven aircraft that is flown by a pilot remotely, while a payload operator is responsible for capturing any images and video. The RCMP currently operates several different systems that carry both still and video cameras, infrared cameras or thermal imagery.

“The exceptional work by our RPAS operators and all of the responding members led to the successful resolution of this call,” said Superintendent Benoit Jolette with the Codiac Regional RCMP. “This incident is a perfect example of how policing is evolving to use technology, such as the infrared capabilities of the RPAS, to both solve crime and assist with public safety.”

(Photo: submitted by RCMP)