On Monday afternoon at around 2pm after a morning spent patrolling the skies over Lighthouse Beach, Supervisor James Turnham looked to the adjacent Miners Beach and saw smoke rising.

The lifeguards on duty, who were in the process of packing up, quickly conferred and raced to the scene to offer their assistance to emergency services.

Within minutes they were airborne and flying over Sea Acres National Park with their Unmanned Aerial Vehicle.

Thanks to their onboard camera designed to spot hazards in the ocean they were able to perform a 15-minute-flight to help see if there were any people stranded on the trail paths.

The lifeguards were also able to spot the location of the fire, helping police and the fire brigade to plan their response.

Fortunately, the fire didn’t threaten any lives or property and was brought under control by the emergency crews.

“Drone technology is rapidly evolving and it’s encouraging to know the equipment we fly has uses far beyond the beach,” Mr Turnham said.

“We have a good relationship with the other emergency services in the region and we were delighted we were able to help out.”