Officials warn drone owners: Don’t fly over wildfires

Emergency officials and the Federal Aviation Administration are once again warning drone users not to fly over wildfires — or any disaster area — after firefighting efforts have been halted at least three times in the past two weeks in Northern California.

On Wednesday, firefighting helicopters and tanker planes battling a wildfire in the Santa Cruz mountains, southwest of San Jose, Calif., were grounded for about an hour because of a drone flying over the area, according to the Santa Cruz Sheriff’s Office.

On Sunday, operations at an airport in Petaluma, Calif. — which was a staging area for aircraft fighting the Wine Country wildfires — were briefly halted due to the presence of a drone, and the owner was issued a citation. Another drone flight was reported to the FAA after disrupting firefighting efforts in the Santa Rosa, Calif., area last week.

While a number of drone videos showing the devastation of the Wine Country wildfires have gone viral, officials warn that unless authorized with local officials, the flights pose a safety threat. It’s illegal to fly drones in disaster areas, due to the risk of hitting rescue or firefighting aircraft.

Read: In California’s Weed Country, wildfires burn both cash and crops

After the Petaluma incident, the California Highway Patrol issued a blunt statement on Facebook: “FIRE FIGHTING PLANES CANNOT FLY IF YOUR DRONE IS IN THE AIR! Land them if you want these fires out!”

The FAA is reminding drone owners with a new message on its webpage: “The FAA warns unauthorized drone operators that they may be subject to significant fines if they interfere with emergency response operations. Flying a drone without authorization in or near the disaster area may violate federal, state, or local laws and ordinances, even if a Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) is not in place. Allow first responders to save lives and property without interference.”

Drone flights are a growing problem for wildland firefighters. After logging just 12 such incidents in 2015, the Department of the Interior reported 42 drone incursions over wildfire areas in 2016, some of which nearly led to disaster. “Fire suppression aviators were forced to take evasive actions to avoid disastrous collisions with drones on several occasions,” the Interior Department said in a statement.

On Sunday, a drone that was flying too high hit a commercial airplane in Canada. No one was injured, and the plane landed safely in Quebec City.

Read: FAA makes it illegal to fly drones around the Statue of Liberty and other major landmarks

Meanwhile, firefighters said they expect full containment of all the wildfires in Wine Country by Friday. Cooler weather has helped, and the first rain of the season is expected Thursday, aiding their efforts even more.

Tens of thousands of residents were finally being allowed to go back to their homes as evacuation orders were lifted. The death toll rose again Wednesday, to at least 42, with at least 5,700 buildings destroyed. California’s Office of Emergency Services reported Wednesday that the fires had burned more than 330 square miles in the state since Oct. 8 — an area larger than New York City.