Firefighters 'impacted' by drone while battling trio of wildfires in B.C.'s Kootenay region
Firefighters working to tame a trio of wildfires in B.C.'s Central Kootenay region were "impacted" by an illegal drone in their airspace on Wednesday.
Officials said the drone was spotted hovering over the flames at the Arrow Lake wildfire complex, and that there were multiple other people operating unmanned aerial vehicles in the vicinity.
"The presence of drones near an active wildfire can slow down, or completely shut down, aerial firefighting efforts due to safety concerns," the B.C. Wildfire Service said in a news release.
"If a drone collides with firefighting aircraft, the consequences could be deadly."
Officials noted the airspace around wildfires is automatically considered "flight restricted" under national aviation regulations. The restricted space spans to a radius of five nautical miles around active fires, and to an altitude of more than 900 metres.
People caught flying drones that have interfered with firefighting efforts can be fined as much as $100,000 or jailed for up to one year – or both.
Officials asked anyone who witnesses an illegal drone in restricted airspace to report it to police or Crime Stoppers.
"Please assist us keeping our aircraft flying and our pilots safe," the B.C. Wildfire Service said.
The Arrow Lake wildfire complex consists of the Octopus Creek, Michaud Creek and Renata Creek fires, which have spread across more than 26,000 hectares combined and prompted a number of evacuations and evacuation alerts.
The Octopus Creek blaze was discovered on July 11, and has already grown to nearly 17,000 hectares in size alone, according to wildfire officials.
Even without drone interference, the B.C. Wildfire Service said thick smoke in the area has forced crews to halt most of the air attacks on the wildfires for the time being.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
What Canadians think of the latest Liberal budget
A new poll suggests the Liberals have not won over voters with their latest budget, though there is broad support for their plan to build millions of homes.
opinion Why you should protect your investments by naming a trusted contact person
Appointing a trusted person to help with financial obligations can give you peace of mind. In his personal finance column for CTVNews.ca, Christopher Liew outlines the key benefits of naming a confidant to take over your financial responsibilities, if the need ever arises.
Teacher shortages see some Ontario high school students awarded perfect grades on midterm exams
Students at a high school in York Region have been awarded perfect marks on their midterm exams in three subjects – not because of their academic performances however, but because they had no teacher.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
Ottawa injects another $36M into vaccine injury compensation fund
The federal government has added $36.4 million to a program designed to support people who have been seriously injured or killed by vaccines since the end of 2020.
An Ontario senior thought he called Geek Squad for help with his printer. Instead, he got scammed out of $25,000
An Ontario senior’s attempt to get technical help online led him into a spoofing scam where he lost $25,000. Now, he’s sharing his story to warn others.
Her fiance has been in prison for 49 years. She's trying to free him before it's too late
Christine Roess is a retired consultant. Ezra Bozeman has spent the last 49 years in prison, serving a life sentence for a murder he says he didn’t commit. Against the odds, the two fell in love.