Portland Police Chief Says Drones Will Help Investigate Crashes

A motorcyclist killed in a crash with a car in Southeast Portland, brought the end to a record year of traffic deaths in the city.  Portland’s Police Chief is counting on new tech tools in the coming year to help the department cope with this trend and others.

After 2023 brought dozens of deaths on the roads of Portland, Chief Bob Day says, “Moving forward, we will focus on continuing to use data and technology to help us work more efficiently and effectively. This year, we started our drone pilot project. Drones can assist with measurements and assessments required for fatal traffic crashes.  What takes a human being hours, the drone can accomplish in minutes. It also has been used by the Metro Explosive Disposal Unit to gather information from a safe distance about possible explosive devices and other incidents involving danger to the community. We launched a dashboard so the public can see where and how often we are using the drones.”

Another high tech tool will also soon be in use for the police force.

“We are anxious to implement the Body Worn Camera Program in 2024. Our pilot this year helped outline small adjustments we need to make regarding policy and training. We will be working with the vendor on acquiring the equipment and training the rest of our personnel. Officers and the community are both eager for the cameras and we want this implemented as soon as possible,” said Day.