The Edo State Government says it has purchased a drone with a range of 25 kilometers to improve topographical mapping, land administration, and erosion mitigation.
According to the government, the drone can also help law enforcement agencies combat kidnapping and banditry.
Dr. Tom Obaseki, Chief Executive Officer of the Edo State Flood Erosion Watershed Management Agency (Edo FEWMA), revealed this to journalists on Wednesday at the Edo FEWMA Drone Centre in Benin City.
Obaseki confirmed that the drone, capable of capturing 1,000 hectares of land space per day, was obtained through the agency’s drone center. He mentioned that the drone can capture the entire city and provide precise measurements of land occupancy for tax revenue generation and land administration.
He explained that with its night vision capability, the drone can help security personnel carry out surveillance at night, tackle kidnapping and random banditry activities, facilitate the inspection of transmission lines and pipelines and enhance oil spill investigations, among other security and emergency needs.
He said, “The Edo FEWMA Drone Center now has a drone that can reach a distance of about 25km, can capture data of 1,000 hectares of land in a day and can stay in the air for 55 minutes before changing its batteries.
“The drone has an interchangeable gimbal that can carry up to 3 different sensors at a time, carrying a LIDAR sensor for topographical mapping in thick vegetation. It can also carry out mapping of the floor of river beds, analyze crop health, has a high precision GNSS/GPS device for engineering designs and measurements, as well as night vision sensor for security and surveillance among others.
“The drone can capture the entire city and give the exact measurement of land occupied for tax revenue generation and land administration. With its night vision capability, the drone can help security personnel carry out surveillance at night, tackle kidnapping and random banditry activities, facilitate the inspection of transmission lines and pipelines and enhance oil spill investigations, among other security and emergency needs.”
The Edo FEWMA boss further noted that the drone centre will make the work of engineers and some other professionals easier.
“For example, designs that would normally take weeks or months to do can be done in a matter of hours using drone technology which can reach places otherwise difficult or dangerous for humans,” the statement added.