California authorities used a heat-seeking drone to find an elderly man who went missing while going to get his mail on Christmas Eve.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department's Malibu Search and Rescue team began working to locate the 78-year-old man suffering from early-onset dementia, according to an Instagram post.
Malibu SAR deployed several drones to assist in the rescue, including an advanced drone that uses infrared heat-seeking technology to locate targets.
An infrared detector detected a “large heat signature on the side of the road in dense brush,” according to the sheriff's office.
The authorities deployed teams to the scene and found the missing seventy-year-old man lying motionless in the bushes next to the road.
“When rescuers arrived at the scene, they noticed that the missing man was suffering from a cold-related illness, and was confused and unable to walk,” Malibu Saar said.
Rescuers provided a warm blanket and cared for the man in an ambulance, the report said.
“A miracle just in time for the holidays!” officials said in a post.
First responders were keen to note how integral the drone was to the rescue operation.
“The deployment of unmanned aircraft systems has proven the incredible value these newly certified tools provide to our search and rescue operations,” the post read.
