Police in California city consider new ways to use drones during coronavirus outbreak

By: Fox News

March 24, 2020

A police department in California has been considering new ways of using its drones during the coronavirus outbreak, including a potential plan to communicate with “vulnerable” populations such as the homeless.

The Chula Vista Police Department, located just south of San Diego near the California-Mexico border, recently purchased two $11,000 drones — doubling its fleet —  that will be outfitted with speakers and night vision cameras.

“We have not traditionally mounted speakers to our drones, but …  if we need to cover a large area to get an announcement out, or if there were a crowd somewhere that we needed to disperse — we could do it without getting police officers involved,” said Capt. Vern Sallee told the Financial Times.