Dubai Civil Defence (DCD) has partnered with Avaya to introduce drones for monitoring and enhancing response time to fire incidents, said Colonel Ali Hassan Al Mutawa, Assistant Director of Smart Services Department, DCD.

Colonel Al Mutawa added: “One of our key responsibilities to the public is to remain fully alert while managing our resources effectively and efficiently during emergency situations. The drones have capabilities to provide live video feeds of fire incidents to the control room and mobile devices.

“By collecting real-time video information and sharing it across our channels, we are better equipped to respond to incidents, thus helping Dubai progress towards its goal of becoming the happiest city in the world and achieve its smart vision goals.”

Al Mutawa said the drones are fitted with thermal sensors, which can be used to detect the improper storage of chemicals in warehouses and factories.

Jim Chirico, Chief Executive Officer at Avaya, added: “Avaya has long supported government officials around the world to improve emergency response capabilities and increase user happiness with those services. We are proud to be cooperating with Dubai Civil Defence once again to help the directorate to identify and resolve citizen issues quickly and efficiently across more channels and with more data than ever before.”