Amateur drone pilots in Southern California are hurting firefighting efforts and endangering pilots of air tankers dropping flame retardant. The pilots are flouting rules set up in cooperation with news helicopters whose pilots go through extensive training and are in contact with firefighters when reporting on fires. (The New York Times, July 19, 2015, by Jennifer Medina)
The drones have hampered firefighters in the Lake Fire, San Bernardino County, in more than one instance, keeping helicopters from dropping fire retardant. The U.S. Forest Service has put a temporary flight restriction in place with criminal charges facing violators. State legislators are introducing bills to increase fines and institute jail time for drone pilots interfering with fire fighters. (Ars Technica, July 19, 2015, by Megan Geuss)