Crime & Safety
Police Drones Get More Docks In Newport Beach As Drone Program Expands
The Newport Beach Police Department just finished adding more docks as part of its Drone as a First Responder program.
NEWPORT BEACH, CA — The Newport Beach Police Department just finished installing a total of ten drone docks throughout the city.
The move comes in anticipation of big waves and powerful tides forecasted to pummel the California coast starting Monday.
According to Officer Aaron Sandoval, who also serves as a drone pilot, the drones can answer calls ranging from missing children reports to violent crimes in progress.
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The Drone as a First Responder program was originally unveiled in 2025 and has since served the city and its community — notably, during the inundation of flooding that muddied the streets of the Balboa Peninsula just a few weeks back.
"Officers were having a hard time getting onto the peninsula due to the flooding," Sandoval said. "So the drone was able to get on scene, provide real-time intelligence to director heads, to relay any information that they might need."
Find out what's happening in Newport Beach-Corona Del Marfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
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