Drones Rescue Intoxicated Man Found Unconscious in Dumpster, Police Report

Police say they saved the life of a 47-year-old intoxicated man found unconscious late Friday night with the help of drones.

The man was discovered in a dumpster, where he had gone to shield himself from the cold in the Rural Municipality of Corman Park.

Chief Constable Robert Duttchen with the Corman Park Police Service reported that officers received multiple calls just before midnight about a suspicious man walking on Highway 41 without proper winter clothing.

An officer attempted to locate the man on foot but was unsuccessful. He could only identify footprints in the snow.

“The officer who started tracking the footprints might have eventually led us there,” Duttchen said. “But obviously it takes more time to cover the ground on foot than it does to cover the ground with an aerial survey.”

Drones and infrared cameras were then used in the search. Another officer equipped with these tools helped find the man, which ultimately saved his life.

“We’ve used it before for locating missing people and looking for a youth who has fled,” Duttchen said. “But I think this is our first life-saving deployment of the drone.”

Officers eventually found the man inside the dumpster, where he had lost consciousness.

Police reported that with the wind chill, temperatures felt like between –20 C and –24 C at the time.

“[It’s] highly likely that had he remained in that dumpster in an intoxicated state, he would have frozen to death,” Duttchen said.

“So I cannot commend our officers enough for their quick action and their deliberate and systemic approach to conducting this area search.”

Police kept the man in a holding cell overnight so he could sober up and to assess him for cold-weather related injuries. No such injuries have been reported.