Victorian police to use drones to monitor COVID-19 hotspots

As COVID-19 rise in what’s being called the second wave in Australia, police are turning to drones to help. One thousand extra police will be deployed alongside the drones to stop the spread of the virus.

The coronavirus cases in Australia peaked around the end of March with much of the country in lockdown. As the cases started to go down, by around the end of April, a plan was introduced to get the country back up and running. Everything was going well until mid-June when cases in Victoria began to go up after restrictions were lifted, forcing much of the state back into lockdown. Victoria had 2,368 cases as of July 3.

The Victorian state government has responded to this by sending in the army to ensure those who are in coronavirus hotspots aren’t leaving the area unless it’s for work or shopping for the essentials. The government has also deployed 1,000 extra police officers roaming the streets and drones monitoring public spaces from above to ensure people are isolating.

COVID in Australia

Many of the states in Australia have used drones to manage the COVID-19 pandemic, with Western Australia police using drones to ensure the public are following social distancing laws. Drones were also looked at as a possible method to disinfect streets and Australian malls. Australian company Swoop Aero have come up with a plan to use its medical drones to deliver COVID tests around the country.

• Swoop Aero aims to deliver COVID-19 test kits in Australia
• Drones could be used to disinfect Australia’s streets, malls
• Western Australia police to use drones to blast messages out amid coronavirus

Drones and COVID-19

Drones have been present throughout the global pandemic, with some saying that this demonstrates how truly useful drones are. Recently, the University of California San Diego (UCSD) developed a disinfecting drone with UV-C lights. Many countries are using drones to disinfect public areas, along with monitoring busy areas to ensure people are following social distancing rules.

• UV drones aren’t the way to rid areas of COVID-19
• University lab develops disinfecting drone with UV-C lights
• Swoop Aero triples drone fleet size in Malawi amid COVID-19
• COVID-19 could be a boon for the drone industry

Photo: Victorian police