A new video has highlighted how crucial drones are to Icelandic authorities as they try to avert disaster and protect people and property following a series of recent volcanic eruptions in the southeast of the country.
These drones are part of the Icelandic Civil Protection Drone Unit, which is being used to avoid damage to infrastructure when volcanoes erupt.
It comes as volcanoes across the Reykjanes Peninsula have erupted five times since December. The first occurred on December 18 last year north of the town of Grindavik, followed by more on January 14, February 8, March 16, and again on May 29.
Icelandic authorities have been using drones since 2016 to monitor the progression of volcanic eruptions around the country, create maps, and help with search and rescue. However, since the eruptions near Grindavik began, drones became more essential to protecting the local population and infrastructure.
In November 2023, the Icelandic Civil Protection Drone Unit put a DJI Dock—a weather-proof "drone in a box" that can be remotely operated—in the town of Grindavik and near the famous Blue Lagoon. In the months since, these DJI Docks have made over 400 flights to keep an eye on the eruptions in the area.
The video shows how the DJI Dock drones act like eyes in the sky, giving authorities live updates on the precise location of eruptions, as well as the direction of the lava and the rate of the lava flow.
"Drone data we collected can show the direction volume and speed of the lava which help the other departments make better decisions such as turning off power lines or building more defense walls," Arnar Thor Egilsson, chief inspector at the National Commissioner of the Icelandic Police, said in the video.
"With the thermal camera, we can see which lava is old and which is new. We also use it to find lava pools and check whether the defense walls are in good condition to keep the lava away from critical infrastructures."
The drones are also being used to help warn the local residents of an eruption. The 4,000 people who call Grindavik home have been evacuated from their town multiple times as the volcanoes erupted. Footage in the video shows how rivers of lava flooded into the town's outskirts, destroying roads and burning down several houses.
"We put a siren and a strobe light on our Matrice 30T. In the case of evacuation we can launch the drone and let people know the danger is ahead. we needed to evacuate Grindavik because of a possible magma tunnel under the town," Egilsson said.
"As the threat is possibly coming, the DJI Dock is faster than our UAS [unmanned aircraft system] mobile teams, so it's very important to get the drone up in the air as fast as possible," he said. "As for this situation, I can say for sure that drones have never been as important as of now to keep the community and first responders safe."
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