Drone hindered firefighters in battle with Larkspur wildfire in Colorado
A drone hindered firefighters during their battle with the Larkspur Wildfire in Colorado, according to the Forest Service on Thursday.
Drone hindered firefighters in battle with Larkspur wildfire in Colorado
The Forest Service said that the biggest hindrance for Firefighters in their battle with the Larkspur wildfire in Colorado wasn't the weather but a drone that interrupted the water dropping activities manned aircraft.
On Thursday, firefighters were able to control a small wildfire that was burning in a remote part of Douglas County in Colorado. The fire was downgraded on Thursday night from 1 acre to less than half an acre, citing better mapping.
The wildfire started Thursday evening seven miles southwest of Larkspur in a rugged, almost inaccessible terrain, according to KKTV 11 News. Six firefighters rappelled into the fire area from a helicopter so that they could fight the fire from the ground. Before the men dropped in, an air tanker had cleared the way by dropping fire retardant around the perimeter.
“Valuable time was lost with these water dropping aircraft due to the drone intrusion and because of the time of day, only one helicopter is able to return to this fire this evening,” the Forest Service said.
One helicopter will be returning to help the ground crews on Friday. No buildings or structures are threatened by the wildfire.
Keep in mind that drones are required by the FAA to give way to manned aviation. Furthermore, you are prohibited from interfering with any kind of emergency response by flying your drone over an active emergency situation such as a wildfire.
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Photo credit: 9News
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