MASON CITY, Iowa (AP) — The new drone Kossuth County invested in helped authorities rescue a man and his granddaughter from the Upper Des Moines River earlier this month.

The Mason City Globe Gazette reports the remote-control aircraft helped authorities quickly locate Thomas Fitzpatrick of Algona and his granddaughter on July 13.

Deputy Josh Missman says he had just recently finished training on flying the drone aircraft before the rescue. He was able to find Fitzpatrick in less than 5 minutes that day, which enabled rescuers to reach him before nightfall.

That time proved important because Fitzpatrick had had a heart attack and needed medical attention.