SALT LAKE CITY — Several years ago, Nate Mortensen, the CEO of Open Sky Drone Light Shows, saw the pattern of wildfires increasing during the month of July.
He started working on finding a safer way to provide a light show experience when he came across drones.
“Safety comes in from the fact that they are all preprogrammed and that they know exactly what they need to be doing, and that there isn't as much human error that can contribute to a drone coming down,” Mortensen said.
He said drones have several benefits when it comes to wildfire prevention.
“There is no open flame. Two is it does require certain certifications in order just to fly a drone light show,” he said. "There's a lower threshold of kind of, if something goes wrong, what is the severity of that, and the fact that really we're not using explosives in the air.”
However, wildfires aren’t the only concern.
Lexi Tuddenham, the executive director of HEAL Utah, said fireworks have a major impact on air quality and that it gets worse during July.
“You see a spike in some of these air pollutants, PM 2.5 in particular, as well as some of the heavy metals associated with fireworks,” Tuddenham said.
She added that the metals from fireworks can get into the body and cause issues — especially for children, those with pre-existing medical conditions and the elderly.
“A lot of the health systems out there, University of Utah, for example, have to prepare for a surge to their emergency room around these particular events,” Tuddenham said. "You'll see spikes in heart attacks. You'll see spikes in respiratory events.”
However, Mortensen said drones combat some of these concerns.
“They don't leave anything in the air when they go up and when they come down,” Mortensen said. "There's no debris laying around. There's nothing in the water if we're flying near a lake or things like that.”
While many people might feel that drones just aren’t the same as fireworks, Mortensen said it can’t hurt to give them a chance this Pioneer Day.
“While you don't get the pop and the sizzle, you definitely get the customization. You can have a theme with it. You can tell a story throughout the duration of the drone show, and I think that's what can really evoke emotions with people,” he said.
