BROWNSVILLE - Cameron County is tapping into technology to better assess emergency situations.

The popularity of drones went down significantly allowing the county to purchase a $1,500 device.

Cameron County Emergency management coordinator Tom Hushen said they want to better assess flooding damage when there’s a storm or hurricane.

“What we do is sight assessments after a flood. So, we would have to go in manually and check the water levels on houses and document it - we still have to do that - but with the drone we’d be able to see the streets that are damaged a lot better,” he said.

Hushen added accurate assessments could also help with FEMA claims.  

“Once the flood waters recede, it’s hard for us to determine if the street was actually flooded or just the sides. With this drone we’ll get a good aerial view of how flooding affects the streets,” he said.

Hushen said the drone will also be available for other emergencies like fires and rescues on South Padre Island.