According to the Salem News, a specially equipped UAS is expected to fly over the Salisbury Police Department’s station in Salisbury, Massachusetts next week as part of a demonstration of the technology.

According to Police Chief Thomas Fowler, a Rhode Island-based company is scheduled to visit the station to show what a police UAS could mean for a variety of operations, including rescue operations, inspecting suspicious packages and measuring beach erosion.

Detective Keith Forget came up with the idea of potentially using this technology after attending a training session for UAS. After attending the session, Forget thought that the department could benefit from this technology.

“I thought to myself, 'This is a great technology,' so I brought it to the chief's attention and he agreed,” Forget says via the Salem News.

Along with the Salisbury Police Department, the town's emergency management operations and the building inspector could also use UAS, Fowler says. Officials from those departments and others will be among those participating in the demonstration. 

With Salisbury being a beach community, UAS could also be used to save a surfer’s life if they are swept out to sea. Fowler and Forget also say that the technology could be used to help ease beach traffic that clogs town roads on summer weekends.

“There's a million applications for it,” Forget says.