The Georgetown county sheriff's office has a new tool that deputies say will help them save time and money.
Through a federal grant from the Department of Homeland Security, the Georgetown County Sheriff's Office was awarded a Side Scan Sonar that will be used as another tool for homeland security purposes in Georgetown County.
The specialized sonar system gives deputies the ability to see objects under water and on the bottom of the seafloor, like fish, boats, cars, and maybe even guns.
Deputy Michael nelson said, “If you gotta nice, hard sandy bottom, I mean literally the detail you see, like I said you could see crab pots, you can see theoretically, a gun if you're paying close enough attention to the unit.”
The Side Scan Sonar is a specialized sonar system for searching and detecting objects on the seafloor or river bottoms.
It is designed to look sideways and at a downward angle from both sides of a towed unit called a “towfish.”
It is towed behind a boat or mounted on the side.
The Side Scan Sonar then sends sound energy and analyzes the return signal that has bounced off the ocean floor or other objects.
The technique is like taking a picture of the sea floor using a digital camera.
The difference is that the Side Scan Sonar lights up the sea floor with a pulse of sound rather than light and allows the system to work in murky or black water.
Nelson said once they see something on the sonar, they drop two markers and a homing buoy, then divers dive in that exact spot.
The Side Scan Sonar is not only a useful tool, but one that can help investigators locate objects that might have gone undetected before.
The Side Scan Sonar was awarded to the Sheriff’s Office by members of the SeaHawk task force in September of this year.
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Georgetown County Sheriff's Office has a new tool for Homeland Security
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Published: November 25, 2007
Published: November 25, 2007
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