Edinburgh police to start new drone program with grant funds

The Edinburgh Police Department plans to start a drone program and to replace officers’ bulletproof vests after receiving a safety grant from the Indiana Public Employers Plan.

Chief Doyne Little and Edinburgh Town Manager Dan Cartwright say that the town is receiving a nearly $24 thousand dollar grant from the state workers compensation program. The money will purchase two drones as well as replacement vests for the members of the reserve program.

Little said the drone program will be used for many applications including crash investigations, searches for missing children and for building and fire inspections.

IPEP partners with its member agencies to enhance their safety programs by providing an incentive for up to 80% of the purchase price for safety equipment or safety training programs which reduce or limit workers compensation exposure, according to the company website.