Drone saves two Australian swimmers in world first

Drone saves two Australian swimmers in world first

Two teenage boys were rescued by a brand new lifesaving drone in Australia while lifeguards were still training to use the device.
The swimmers, aged 15-17, had got into difficulties off the coast of Lennox Head, New South Wales (NSW).
A member of the public spotted them struggling in heavy surf about 700m (2,300ft) offshore.
Lifesavers instantly sent the drone to drop an inflatable rescue pod, and the pair made their way safely to shore.
John Barilaro, the state's deputy premier, praised the rescue as historic. "Never before has a drone fitted with a flotation device been used to rescue swimmers like this," he said.
Lifeguard supervisor Jai Sheridan was piloting the device when the alarm was raised. He described the experience as "unreal".
"The Little Ripper UAV certainly proved itself today, it is an amazingly efficient piece of lifesaving equipment and a delight to fly," he told the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper.
Mr Sheridan said it took just a minute or two to launch the drone, fly it to the rescue site, and drop the pod.
Any other day, reaching the teenagers could easily have taken three times as long.
The drone's camera also recorded the whole rescue.
The NSW state government revealed in December that it had invested A$430,000 ($340,000 / £247,000) in a fleet of drones. While some are designed to spot sharks, others feature flotation pods, alarms and loudspeakers.
Citation:
“Drone Saves Two Australian Swimmers in World First.” BBC News, BBC, 18 Jan. 2018, www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-42731112.
Response:
This article published by BBC highlights an event in which new technology helped in saving boys that were close to drowning. The bias of the author comes through in a praising tone, thinking that this new tool is beneficial. I think that the purpose of this article was probably to raise awareness of what is becoming possible with new technology. I am coming into this article with much bias, having worked for 30 hours researching the future of artificial intelligence. I am enthralled with the future of technology and the implications for society. This article hints at a larger impact than just the one event. It proves that technology is already outdoing humans in a specific area (lifesaving) and raises the question of where it will surpass us next? The possibilities are both exciting and terrifying. Instead of just glancing through this article, I think it is important to take it as a wake-up call that the future of technology is approaching faster than many of us anticipated.  

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