Municipality of Enschede wants to use drones for security

The municipality of Enschede wants to monitor business parks and the campus of the University of Twente with an autonomously operating drone that can record images of burglars or fire. Legislation and regulations still stand in the way of that commitment.

According to Dronewatch, Mayor Onno van Veldhuizen says that the municipality is in talks with various ministries and that the wish is to conduct a trial at two locations. From a technical point of view, the use of drone surveillance is already possible, according to the mayor. In the event of a report of a burglary or fire, an autonomously operating drone should fly out and take images of the location, which are then transmitted live to the control room.

According to current laws and regulations, such an autonomous surveillance drone is not allowed. A drone must be supervised by an operator and drones must not fly over buildings, roads or people. The intended way of deploying drones by the municipality may also violate privacy legislation.