Drone providing ‘eye in the sky’ at Clark County Fair

DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) — If you see something flying above you at this year’s Clark County Fair, don’t be alarmed. It’s not a bird, it’s not a plane.

It’s a drone.

The Clark County Sheriff’s Office has added the new layer of technology for this year’s fair to keep patrons safe while adding eyes in the sky to reduce law enforcement’s reaction time in case of an emergency.

The drone will be used primarily during times of higher activity, such as weekends and evenings.

Drones aren’t the only addition to this year’s fair in the name of safety. Fair-goers will notice an increased presence of law enforcement on the grounds, as well as more lighting in the parking lots.

Fair officials said the drone is a great addition considering issues they have had in the past.

“We had a problem in the parking lot where we were having triple parking and we’ve been able to eliminate that because I could see it visually from the air,” said Executive Director Dean Blair.

Authorities said the additions are actually preventative rather than reactionary. They stressed that there have been no threats against the fair or attendees, nor do they have any intel of anything happening.

“We like to have the staff here to stop any of those problems before they may happen,” said Det. Brian Melchi. “And just to be visual and let people see us.”

The Clark County Sheriff’s Office said it worked to get a drone pilot certified so it could fly within Federal Aviation Administration guidelines. The sheriff’s office has three drones for different situations, and has found them to be a great resource.

“If a problem is called out by anyone on the midway, whether that be patrons or whether that be sheriff’s office staff, they can zoom in on that and find the problem to help us get to that location,” said Melchi.

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