Guangzhou, capital of southern China’s Guangdong Province, established a drone emergency response and rescue center on July 20, the latest in a series moves by Chinese cities to beef up their capacity to deal with emergencies through drone technologies.
According to Chinanews.com, a state-run news agency, the center has 127 staff and close to 200 sets of drones and accessories meant for rescue operations.
They are expected to provide services such as emergency communication, lighting, broadcasting, video transmission, mapping, material delivery and personnel search.
In addition to the equipment and accessories per se, the center also has developed its own digital voice broadcasting system, matrix lighting, gimbal spotlight and anti-blast robotic arm to be mounted on the drones.
With reportedly one of the biggest capacities in the world, these drones are widely adopted in various emergency missions.
Guangzhou is among the many cities across China that has upgraded its emergency response and rescue system in the face of more frequent natural disasters and other kinds of public hazards over the past few years. The use of cutting-edge technologies like drones has been at the heart of its efforts.
Its official rescue team has been involved in coping with natural disasters like wildfire, torrential rain, and flooding within and outside of Guangdong Province for more than 60 times.
“Guangzhou is a megapolis that is under immense pressure to ensure day-to-day safety of the city,” said Yang Weiqiang, director of Guangzhou Emergency Management Bureau. “With periodical natural disasters, [we] must strengthen capacity-building in the area of aerial emergency response.”
