Moen (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Moen becomes the 5th Fluvia fire zone town with a drone. Drones, operated by Citymesh pilots, aid firefighters and police. Zone commander Olivier Dorme aims faster response across 5-kilometer radius.
As VRT News reported, Moen, near Zwevegem, in the province of West Flanders, Belgium, is the 5th municipality in the Fluvia fire zone to get a fire department drone. The other towns with drones are Kuurne, Menen, Wargem, and Sint-Eloois-Winkel.
The new drone flies immediately when there is an emergency. It can record live images of fires, accidents, or other dangerous situations. Firefighters can see what is happening before they arrive.
“We chose Mon because we also want to quickly get a picture of the emergencies in the south of the zone,”
explains zone commander Olivier Dorme.
“That includes the south of Kortrik, Spiere-Helkin, and Zwevegem.”
How is Fluvia fire zone using drones to improve emergency response?
Each drone can fly up to 5 kilometres from its station. Officials say the goal is to increase this range to 7 kilometres. Once that happens, the drones will be able to operate across the whole zone.
Both the fire department and the police use drones. They are equipped with thermal imaging cameras, whichhelp locate missing people even in dark or hard-to-reach areas. Trained Citymesh pilots in Oostkamp operate the drones. The live images are sent immediately to emergency crews.
A similar project was carried out in Belgium before the current Fluvia drones. In 2018, emergency services tested drones in Kortrijk, at Brussels Airport, and in the Port of Antwerp‑Bruges. The drones were used to reach incidents quickly and send live images back to firefighters and police.
In 2022, the first operational use took place in Genk, where drones were deployed during real emergencies. These early projects led to a nationwide program by Citymesh to place “drone‑in‑a‑box” units in emergency zones across Belgium.
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