Skip to main content

New Jersey cops use speaker-drones to help enforce pandemic lockdown

Well, it seems like it had to happen sooner or later. Following similar moves by police in Spain and France, cops in the U.S. are now using drones with loudspeakers that yell at people to stay home during the pandemic.

Recommended Videos

The so-called speaker-drones have taken to the skies over Elizabeth City in New Jersey, which has been on lockdown since March 21 due to the coronavirus, officially known as COVID-19

Please enable Javascript to view this content

In one of his regular briefings during the pandemic, Chris Bollwage, mayor of Elizabeth City, told residents that five speaker-equipped drones will help the police to manage the lockdown.

The flying machines will blurt out an automated message telling folks to stop gathering together outside and to return home. Anyone who ignores the message could be fined up to $1,000, Elizabeth police warned in a Facebook post. Under the rules of the state’s lockdown, people are only allowed out for essential business and exercise.

Following a backlash on social media from people upset at the decision to use drones to help enforce the lockdown, Elizabeth police said it was only trying to save lives, adding that no recordings were being made, or pictures snapped.

The city’s use of speaker-drones follows similar deployments in France and Spain, with both countries also locked down as part of measures designed to slow the spread of COVID-19.

Cops in the U.K. have also been using drones during the pandemic, but instead of broadcasting recorded messages, they used captured aerial footage to shame people for being outdoors in apparent violation of stay-at-home rules. Civil liberties group Big Brother Watch described the tactic as “sinister” and “counter-productive.”

News of Elizabeth City’s new drones comes just a few days after a speaker-drone appeared in nearby New York City relaying messages about the importance of socially distancing. No one appears to know where it came from, including the New York Police Department. The Federal Aviation Administration said it’s investigating the mysterious flight.

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
Dazzling drone display targets coronavirus in South Korea
dazzling drone display targets coronavirus in south korea show

The government of South Korea recently put on a dazzling drone display to thank people for their efforts in fighting the coronavirus pandemic, while also reminding them not to let up.

The nation received global praise early on in the pandemic for acting quickly and robustly to slow its spread, with only 284 deaths having so far been attributed to the virus in a nation of just over 50 million people.

Read more
Samsung is making billions in profit during pandemic. Here’s how
samsung smart home bixby on tv

Samsung has said it's expecting to report strong sales for the April-to-June quarter, despite the challenges brought by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Beating estimates, the Korean tech titan said late Monday it’s expecting to see an operating profit of 8.1 trillion won ($6.8 billion) for its second quarter when the official figures come out later this month, marking an increase of 22.7% on a year earlier. The figure is despite an expected year-on-year drop in sales of 7.4% to 52 trillion won ($43.6 billion) for the three-month period.

Read more
Space agencies’ online dashboard shows lockdown effects on Earth
space force cold war chris bogdan satellite earth composite getty 2

A new online dashboard shows in impressive detail the kind of changes taking place on Earth as a result of lockdowns prompted by the coronavirus pandemic.

The Earth Observing Dashboard, unveiled on Thursday, June 25, is the result of a joint effort by three of the world’s major space agencies, namely NASA, ESA (Europe), and JAXA (Japan).

Read more