S/ Drone / If you need help or are near someone who needs assistance, please send me a signal.

The Japan Lifesaving Association used a drone to patrol a beach in the town of Hayama in Kanagawa Prefecture on September 11.

Lifeguards were no longer on duty here from the beginning of this month.

The drone also monitored waters outside the swimming zone to check for any incidents.

Many beachgoers still swim or conduct other activities in the sea amid severe late summer heat, even as most beaches in Japan closed by the end of August and had no lifeguard services.

S/ Kikuchi Futoshi, Japan Lifesaving Association / The Shonan coastal area has many visitors all year round. By regularly using drones, we want to reinforce patrols in swimming areas and places where people go.

The association said it will work with entities such as the Kanagawa prefectural government to explore the use of drones for wide-area safety management along the coast of Sagami Bay.