Drones and mapping go hand in hand: the aerial imagery captured by drones provides a new way of creating accurate maps and models of areas both large and small.  DroneDeploy has been at the forefront of drone mapping since 2013.  It’s founders have always done what they could to help first responders as situations arose – and now, the company’s non-profit arm DroneDeploy.org is working with other organizations to bring drone mapping technology to places it is most needed.

Today, DroneDeploy has announced a partnership between Team Rubicon Australia, founded in 2016, and DroneDeploy.org.

Team Rubicon Australia connects skilled military veterans and civilian volunteers with emergency response professional.  The organization deploys its highly skilled teams to aid in disaster relief operations around the world: most recently after the devastating bush fires in Australia this year.  Despite the additional complications of the COVID-19 crisis, Team Rubicon’s teams gather aerial intelligence that can assist emergency services personnel on the ground in managing situations, evacuating communities if necessary, and planning recovery and rebuilding operations.

“Team Rubicon’s Aviation and Intelligence Program Manager and 2019 DroneDeploy Conference Keynote Speaker, Rich Adams, expressed the need for software that would be used to find new opportunities, not just solve problems,” says a DroneDeploy press release. “Being able to provide quick, accurate data to the appropriate authorities while minimizing costs and effort was imperative to Team Rubicon’s operations. During the immediate aftermath of Indonesia’s catastrophic earthquake and tsunami in 2018, Team Rubicon was able to fly 42 missions, capturing 6,000 images over 104 acres of land. This data was then used to identify structures and jump-start search and rescue teams’ operations within 24-48 hours.”