By Tim Oliver, Director of IT/GIS, Horry County

Horry County, South Carolina, is one of the fastest-growing counties in the country. Myrtle Beach is the largest city in Horry County, and its crystal-clear beaches and breath-taking views play a large part in attracting flocks of visitors each year. Horry County’s population of 290,000 swells to more than 2.5 million in the summer months!

The constant growth is great for the economy, but it puts a lot of pressure on the county to accommodate the influx of new businesses that pop up along the coast. The power of GIS and drone technology is one way we’ve learned to leverage modern technology to our advantage.

Drones are not toys anymore. The power of drone technology extends beyond the common public safety usage in many counties. Horry County relies on drone flights to capture data for storm water fee billing, damage assessment, beach erosion after storms, and more.

The data behind the images provides the county with the ability to capture and process a level of information previously unattainable in such short timeframes. The ROI becomes a significant factor in adopting the drone technology at the GIS level.

Our implementation of drone technology has allowed us to significantly increase our collection of storm water fees, in particular. We anticipate an increase of $300,000 in the collection of these fees over a three-year period, since we’re able to accurately capture fee data on the first, second, and third billings, rather than having to wait until the fourth billing process.

Drones continue to provide substantial benefits to our staff and citizens in a variety of ways. To learn more about how you could use drones to increase revenue for your county, visit www.tylertech.com/planningconnectedcommunities or email me directly at olivert@horrycounty.org