Crime & Safety
Livermore Man With Dementia Located By LPD Drone
A drone was able to spot a 75-year-old man in a field far from his Livermore home after he'd been missing a few hours, police said.
LIVERMORE, CA — The Livermore Police Department was able to locate a missing 75-year-old man with dementia through the use of drones, the department announced.
The man had been missing for about two hours before the LPD Drone Unit deployed a drone. After about a 20-minute search, officers found the missing man in a bush in a field miles from his home, police said.
He was evaluated by the Livermore-Pleasanton Fire Department, then safely reunited with his family.
Police drones can reach altitudes of up to 400 feet, and can see people or objects up to 2,000 feet away. Drones can clearly read license plates or identify a face up at those distances in ideal conditions. Thermal cameras can detect body heat, and can be used to detect people in day or night, even when they're in the forest or hiding behind trees or bushes several hundred feet away.
In San Mateo County, a 79-year-old woman with dementia, hiking with companions, vanished almost two weeks ago.
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