Drone operators are causing problems for firefighters in California’s San Bernardino County.
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Rewards totaling $75,000 are being offered for information about those who were flying drones, or UAV’s, near three recent wildfires. Official rescue aircrafts employed to disperse flame-repellent materials have had to be halted due to fear that the drones may cause injury or a mid-air collision.
San Bernardino County officials are cracking down on illegal drone operations.
Officials, however, will be setting up a hotline in attempt to get more information and bring these irresponsible drone owners to justice.
“We don’t want to put our firefighters in harm’s way”, San Bernardino County Sheriff John McMahon said. In the past five weeks, the U.S. Forest Service has been forced to call off water drops at three different fires, including the North Fire on the 15 Freeway through the Cajon Pass, because unmanned aircraft were spotted in the area. The US Forest Service initiated an informational campaign to tell people about the risks of flying drones around wildfires, posting signs saying “If You Fly, We Can’t”.
On July 12 – the first day of the Mill 2 fire – officials had to briefly suspend a tanker after a drone was spotted flying over Mill Creek Canyon near California 38. Pilots say drones pose a serious danger. The county is not offering a reward for that incident because it occurred within San Bernardino’s city limits, not within the county’s jurisdiction, county spokesman David Wert said.
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He worries that such activity will force laws making drone use illegal, or requiring a license or permit to operate them.
