What was going on up in the sky today?

Capturing the curiosity of Magnolians this morning, airplanes and helicopters commandeered land and sea around the Discovery Park Lighthouse saving lives.

But it was only practice.

Pubic safety agencies were out around the Sound practicing rescue efforts, all in preparation in case of the real thing.

?Washington State Patrol launched its Cessna, which circled the park using its FLIR camera system. This system is not only a camera but picks up the thermal heat image of people and objects,? said Kyle Moore of the Seattle Fire Dept. He said the Cessna launched from Olympia and circled the park and spotted the two ?victims? on the side of the cliff which is located a couple hundred yards south east of the Discovery Park Lighthouse. The Cessna sent live the images it was receiving to the command post.

Working with the WSP was the King County Sheriff’s Office Helicopter, Guardian 2, which took off from Renton and powered over the park where mock patients were waiting. Crews from the Seattle Fire?s High Rise Rescue Team and the King County Sheriff Deputites rescued the victims from the hillside using the helicopter?s hoist system.

Mock victims were then flown to the landing strip along the old military housing site of Discovery Park where they were placed in a Seattle Fire Dept. Medic Unit and transported to the command post.

Also a part of the day was the Central Pierce County Fire and Rescue, King County Sheriff?s Office and Bellevue Police. Seattle Police had ?new unmanned aerial vehicles. They look like model helicopters and can scale heights up to 600 feet to capture video or thermal images. The police department is the first among all major West Coast agencies to use the technologies.

This is the first time all of the various agencies have come together for a large scale disaster drill, according to Moore. Funding for the operations have come from the Department of Homeland Security grants. (Photos courtesy the Seattle Fire Department.)