For the first time in Abruzzo, firefighting drones are being utilized to combat wildfires under a new agreement. The pact was signed by Maurizio Scelli, Director of the Regional Civil Protection Agency, and Gennaro Tornatore, Regional Director of the Fire Brigade.
Known as Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS or APR in Italian), the system has already been activated in recent days to monitor fire-affected territories. Specifically, the drones are employed post-fire to map the perimeter and extent of burned areas. Using onboard thermal cameras, they detect residual hotspots capable of sparking new blazes. Pilots transmit the coordinates of these hotspots in real-time to Fire Brigade and Civil Protection ground crews, who immediately intervene for extinguishing and cleanup.
“The purpose of this aerial monitoring,” stated Scelli, “is to identify the impacted surface area and detect any heat zones requiring intervention to eliminate the risk of reignition. This agreement stems from commitments made by the leadership of both institutions – the Fire Brigade and Regional Civil Protection – and recognizes the critical importance of this emergency during these difficult days.”
Referring to recent blazes, Scelli added, “In coordination with the Forestry Carabinieri and other law enforcement, we will initiate all necessary actions in the coming days for continuous territorial surveillance aimed at identifying those responsible for the fires. As is widely known, these fires almost never start due to natural causes, but almost exclusively result from negligent or, unfortunately, deliberate human actions.”
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