Heavy rains and severe flooding forced a Washington deputy to get creative in order to help save a stranded driver last week, using a drone to drop a life jacket to the man.
The rescue happened Dec. 10 when the King County Sheriff's Office received a report of a man trapped on the roof of his vehicle, which was stuck in the rising and fast-moving floodwaters of the Snoqualmie River, the agency stated in a social media post. Intense rain in over several days had caused massive flooding and evacuations in the area.
In order to help the stranded driver, a deputy deployed a drone, which was able to drop a life jacket for the man to use. In video released by the sheriff's office, the man is seen grabbing the flotation gear, putting it on and giving the drone a thumb's up.
The driver eventually was saved when a helicopter from a naval air station hoisted him to safety.
Brandyn Hull, communications manager for the sheriff's office, told CNN that this was a first for the agency. None of the agency's drone pilots had ever made such a delivery before. (Per WVTM-TV)
"But this shows, in real time, how our deputy helped save a life," the sheriff's office stated.
