HCSO drones help rescue man reported missing in Wimberley
AUSTIN (KXAN) — A man who was reported missing in Wimberley last week was rescued thanks to Hays County Sheriff’s Office drones, the agency said on Tuesday.
The incident happened on April 24 around 1:50 p.m. after the man’s wife reported he “wandered off their 5-acre property about five hours earlier,” according to a social media post from HCSO. The agency said the man had dementia.
HCSO said the man was found quickly thanks to the Hays Unmanned Robotics Team (HURT) drone technology. He was found uninjured near a creek bed that was on a neighboring property and was “safely reunited with his wife.”
“A big thank you to our team for their quick response and use of tech to bring him home safely,” HCSO said.
In 2019, HSCO partnered with the San Marcos Police Department and Texas State University to share a fleet of drones as part of the Hays Unmanned Robotics Team. The team has 24 active drones with 17 pilots.
The drones cost Hays County $54,000, and there are approximately 10 drones in HURT.
