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Should county be concerned about drones?

Maybe you've seen them flying around at big events... and certainly there's been plenty of talk in the media about drones becoming more accessible to regular people.

Hamilton County Commissioners will get an update on possible concerns Monday from first responders.

Michael Hartzler is director of the Greater Cincinnati Fusion Center, an emergency response agency.

"We're falling back on the suspicious activity reporting model," says Hartzler. "We educate the public and law enforcement to report any suspicious activity and if, for example, an unmanned aircraft system or device was above critical infrastructure, we would want that reported to us so we could follow up and get it to the appropriate agency to look into."

Hartzler says there haven't been any concerning incidents reported here.

He adds no local law enforcement are currently using drones.

However, as WVXU reported in July, the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction is considering the use of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) to help patrol the grounds surrounding two Warren County prisons.
 

Senior Editor and reporter at WVXU with more than 20 years experience in public radio; formerly news and public affairs producer with WMUB. Would really like to meet your dog.