{"id":165280,"date":"2026-02-05T15:59:06","date_gmt":"2026-02-05T15:59:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/165280\/"},"modified":"2026-02-05T15:59:06","modified_gmt":"2026-02-05T15:59:06","slug":"kern-county-fire-department-launches-advanced-drone-program-for-emergency-response","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/165280\/","title":{"rendered":"Kern County Fire Department launches advanced drone program for emergency response"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KBAK\/KBFX) \u2014 The Kern County Fire Department has launched a new unmanned aerial systems program, thanks to funding from Second District Supervisor Chris Parlier. <\/p>\n<p>The initiative introduces five advanced drones designed to enhance emergency response operations and improve firefighter safety.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"{p}The Kern County Fire Department has added drones to its Unmanned Aerial Systems program, giving firefighters \u201ceyes in the sky\u201d when responding to emergency situations.{\/p}{p}KBAK\/KBFX{\/p}\" class=\"ImageEmbed_image__qZBo_\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/9e0899f6-75a5-48a7-b247-fc73b1790af5-Image20260204T205037.015.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>The Kern County Fire Department has added drones to its Unmanned Aerial Systems program, giving firefighters \u201ceyes in the sky\u201d when responding to emergency situations.<\/p>\n<p>KBAK\/KBFX<\/p>\n<p>While the county already uses smaller drones, these new additions offer enhanced capabilities. <\/p>\n<p>Equipped with thermal vision and stronger zoom, the drones provide comprehensive scene overviews, allowing personnel to respond more effectively to emergencies. <\/p>\n<p>The thermal feature is particularly useful for quickly locating injured individuals or those involved in incidents with limited visibility.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The program is meant to enhance, not replace personnel,&#8221; said Kern County Fire Department Public Information Officer, Jermey Ruiz. <\/p>\n<p>The drones offer incident commanders a 360-degree view of emergency scenes, even in obstructed conditions, darkness, and fog.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"{p}The Kern County Fire Department has added drones to its Unmanned Aerial Systems program, giving firefighters \u201ceyes in the sky\u201d when responding to emergency situations.{\/p}{p}KBAK\/KBFX{\/p}\" class=\"ImageEmbed_image__qZBo_\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/dbfea269-7650-4d2c-8e75-69e9e85250bc-Image20260204T205040.161.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>The Kern County Fire Department has added drones to its Unmanned Aerial Systems program, giving firefighters \u201ceyes in the sky\u201d when responding to emergency situations.<\/p>\n<p>KBAK\/KBFX<\/p>\n<p>Supervisor Chris Parlier expressed confidence in the program, stating, &#8220;I knew these drones were gonna be a game changer, and they&#8217;ve already proven their worth.&#8221; <\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"{p}Former Bakersfield City Councilman Chris Parlier describes how he plans to improve district two if elected to the Kern County Board of Supervisors. (KBAK\/KBFX){\/p}\" class=\"ImageEmbed_image__qZBo_\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/ae09ff80-ca05-4c0a-956d-6b669e8a568a-Sequence_MILLS_MICHAELCHRISPARLIERCAM1_0001_frame_3911.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Former Bakersfield City Councilman Chris Parlier describes how he plans to improve district two if elected to the Kern County Board of Supervisors. (KBAK\/KBFX)<\/p>\n<p>The drones have already been instrumental in recent incidents, such as the<a href=\"https:\/\/bakersfieldnow.com\/news\/local\/crash-on-highway-58-involves-about-15-vehicles-shuts-both-directions-kern-county-california-highway-patrol-toweline-road-chp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"> Jan. 27 Highway 58 collision<\/a>, where they provided comprehensive views of the wreck, aiding in efficient decision-making.<\/p>\n<p>In another instance, the drones assisted during a methane leak by providing a clear view of an obstructed scene and utilizing thermal detection to identify heat signatures. <\/p>\n<p>This allowed personnel to safely manage the situation.<\/p>\n<p>Comment with Bubbles<\/p>\n<p>BE THE FIRST TO COMMENT<\/p>\n<p>The UAS program&#8217;s five new drones will enable the department to train and license staff, ensuring continued effective assistance during emergencies.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KBAK\/KBFX) \u2014 The Kern County Fire Department has launched a new unmanned aerial systems program, thanks&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":165281,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[151,153,152],"class_list":{"0":"post-165280","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-bakersfield","8":"tag-bakersfield","9":"tag-bakersfield-headlines","10":"tag-bakersfield-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/165280","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=165280"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/165280\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/165281"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=165280"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=165280"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=165280"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}