At the most recent Crookston City Council meeting, as part of the consent agenda, the council approved a date and time for a public hearing on the Crookston Police Department’s implementation of an Unmanned Aerial System, or drone program. Recently, KROX sat down with Police Chief Darin Selzler and Fire Chief Shane Heldstab to learn more about the drone program and how it can help both departments and the community.
“Thanks for meeting with us today. For about the last ten years, the Crookston Police Department has been a partner agency with the Grand Forks Special Operations Group, which we call the Special Operations Group, SOG,” says Chief Selzler. “What SOG consists of is that it’s out of Grand Forks, and because we are a border county, Polk County is, and we have the opportunity to be part of their team. That consists of S.W.A.T., Unmanned Aerial Systems, Crisis Negotiations, they have Bomb Squad and Water and Rescue.” Being a border county means Crookston can have members on the SOG team who can utilize those resources in the event of a critical incident where the services are needed.
Selzler says there are currently two members of the Crookston Police Department who are members of the SOG, Unmanned Aerial Systems Team. “They have been on that team for several years. They obtained their FAA pilot license through that program, and they have continued training through that program,” says Selzler. “So, we have been able to utilize drones in Crookston in the past under the Special Operations Group (SOG) umbrella. We have used them for missing persons and other things if we need something like that.”
Selzler explained that the trouble is those drones are kept and maintained in Grand Forks, so if they need something, it isn’t always something that can be utilized. “So, basically, having the pilots already here in Crookston, already having them FAA certified and everything through that, I’ve always been considering or liking the option of bringing a drone program to the Crookston Police Department,” says Selzler. “Part of creating or implementing a drone program in Crookston is what we are doing now. We have to open it up per statute for public comment and things like that.”
Since the topic of a drone program has been brought up in Crookston, the big question or concern is what would it be used for. “What we are really looking to use these drones for is to enhance public safety,” says Selzler. “When we talk about public safety in the City of Crookston, that includes law enforcement, the fire department, and emergency management.” Chiefs Selzler and Heldstab have been discussing the drone program for a while and reviewing everything that they could aid in. “One of these drones that we are looking to utilize has what is called infrared, or FLIR, or thermal imaging. For example, for firefighting, we could fly a drone and we could detect hot spots. It could give an aerial view where Shane could view that fire and see where the fire’s origin is coming from,” says Selzler. “We can use it to fly over the river to look for ice jams or something else. And on the law enforcement side to increase apprehension safety, and locate missing persons.”
There has been some worry that these drones will be used for reasons other than to enhance safety, for example, to spy on people. “Some of the perception is drones will be used to spy on people or for everyday patrol, and that couldn’t be further from the truth,” says Selzler. “The drones cannot and will not be weaponized. Drones won’t be used for everyday use in law enforcement, only for specific events, and all of them are governed and specifically detailed by Minnesota statute.”
Chiefs Selzler and Heldstab wanted to clarify to residents that the drones they are looking at purchasing for utilization in Crookston will not be a tax burden to anyone. “Obviously, Shane and I are close; we work closely together in talking about this. Shane Heldstab had mentioned that his predecessor had some funds available through Emergency Management, specifically dedicated to purchasing a drone,” says Selzler. “And as we further discussed, having the pilots already certified in Crookston, you know we are fortunate to have a little bit larger staff where we could maybe dedicate some officers or resources to help Shane if he needs them for firefighting purposes or through emergency management.” Selzler says it just makes sense for this to be a team effort. The Crookston PD can operate the drones, and the Fire Department can get that assistance when needed.
There are two drones that the Crookston Police Department is looking at purchasing. The main drone would be used for locating missing persons, ensuring apprehension safety, and helping with fires and ice jams, among other things. It would be equipped with infrared and would have a spotlight that would illuminate about a 300 ft. radius. The other drone that they would purchase for use is a lot smaller. “It’s about the size of your hand. That one would be used to enter structures in real-time to view what’s going on before sending in fire, police officers, or anything like that,” says Selzler. “Of course, sometimes, for law enforcement reasons, we would need a search warrant before we could put a drone inside a residence or building or some type of structure.”
Chief Heldstab spoke very seriously about the positive effects having the drone program in Crookston would have. “Especially for fire, when we talk about it, the first thing we do when we get to a structure fire is a 360. We want to look at scene security, see where everyone is, make sure everyone is out safe, things like that,” says Heldstab. “But then we are going to turn around as we start actually battling the fire. Like I said, we’ve done a 360, but then this gets us an aerial view of that, and with that thermal technology, it will help us pinpoint in what direction we gotta go.” Heldstab says that drone technology can better help them locate the seed of the fire, where most of the heat is at. Then, they can go in and attack it, and it can help them develop a plan to move forward as they attack a fire.
Chief Heldstab also points out just how beneficial the drones can be in the spring for Crookston during flood season. “We see these ice jams. Well, if I can get someone with eyes in the sky to show where these ice jams are located, we can now monitor those and see how they are working and how they fluctuate. Everybody around here knows how much an ice jam can fluctuate the level of the river,” says Heldstab. “So, being able to get eyes on that and seeing exactly what is out there, what’s coming in from the east, how is it flowing, how is it leaving town. Being able to see that helps with overall information and enhances our ability to develop our plans as we go forward.”
Public Safety was the theme while talking with Chief Selzler and Chief Heldstab, and how Public Safety can be enhanced by using drones in Crookston. “Public Safety. We are trying to use technology to ensure we can mitigate these incidents even faster,” says Heldstab. “If drones are going to help us do that, that’s why we are trying to do this.”
There will be a public hearing on Monday, April 21, 2025, during the Crookston City Council meeting for anyone who would like to ask questions or comment on the Unmanned Aerial System. Chief Selzler says you can also go to the Crookston website, and under upcoming events, there is a link with his email and phone number if you are unable to make it to the City Council meeting.
The post CPD and CFD share why they want to implement an Unmanned Aerial System in Crookston. first appeared on KROX.