New drone technology helping Iowa State Patrol with crash investigations

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Drivers in Iowa can now expect roads to reopen sooner when accidents happen, thanks to new drone technology to help with crash investigations.

The technology can gather information in 20 to 30 minutes.

Iowa State Patrol Trooper Rob White is one of the eight certified pilots with the ISP to operate this new small unmanned aircraft system.

In 2019, the Iowa State Patrol responded to 149 fatal crashes. With this new drone technology, they're able to fly over crash scenes, take photos that will help with the investigation and cut down on the time they have to close the road.

"It's able to create a 3D rendering of the scene, and with that, we are able to see all the road way evidence that was existing there and be able to study the dynamics of the crash and come up with a solid conclusion," Trooper White said.

Right now, the Iowa State Patrol uses a system called Total Stations. It does point measurements, but then they have to take pictures later and try to match it up.

Take for example

this 50 car pile-up that happened in Des Moines. It would have taken them three to four hours to gather everything, but thanks to the drone, the accident scene was examined in a much shorter time, allowing roads to reopen sooner. "He was done in 35 minutes, quarter mile long scene with all those vehicles. The benefit of that, he was able to not only document the crash scene for measurements, but he was also able to take the pictures as well," Sgt. Alex Dinkla, the information officer for ISP, said. Giving a perspective that was otherwise missing. "Sometimes we are able to see evidence that we would miss standing at ground level oftentimes, skid marks, gouges, scrapes." The Iowa State Patrol rolled these drones out Jan. 6. They will only be used for crash and crime scenes. One certified trooper has already used it in a fatal crash in Jefferson County, which is in southeast Iowa. For the next six to 12 months, the ISP will use both their current investigative techniques and the drone technology. Other states using the drones say it's working well.