Drones Halted California Firefighters

Drones Halted California Firefighters' Efforts to Contain Wildfire

  • By Ginger Hill
  • Jul 20, 2015

As a massive wildfire engulfed Cajon Pass, California yesterday, firefighters were forced to ground their aircraft until five recreational drones stopped flying around in the airspace. Over 20 vehicles were destroyed as the fire quickly crossed Interstate 15. Had it not been for the invasive drones, firefighters might have been able to better contain the out-of-control flames.

Because firefighting aircraft fly so low when performing water drops, drones can wreak havoc for them. As soon as officials see drones, they shut down all aircraft for safety reasons. For example, should a drone get stuck into a wing or propeller, this could result in serious repercussions.

In this situation, ground crews had to stop fighting fires, look for the drone operators and instruct them to stop flying around the fire so that aircraft could continue their attempts at controlling the blaze. This delayed firefighting efforts for 26 minutes, in which battalion chief of the San Bernadino Fire Department verified that this delay “definitely contributed” to the fire hopping the freeway.

mikeledray / Shutterstock.com

About the Author

Ginger Hill is Group Social Media Manager.

Featured

  • Achieving Clear Audio

    In today’s ever-changing world of security and risk management, effective communication via an intercom and door entry communication system is a critical communication tool to keep a facility’s staff, visitors and vendors safe. Read Now

  • Beyond Apps: Access Control for Today’s Residents

    The modern resident lives in an app-saturated world. From banking to grocery delivery, fitness tracking to ridesharing, nearly every service demands another download. But when it comes to accessing the place you live, most people do not want to clutter their phone with yet another app, especially if its only purpose is to open a door. Read Now

  • Survey: 48 Percent of Worshippers Feel Less Safe Attending In-Person Services

    Almost half (48%) of those who attend religious services say they feel less safe attending in-person due to rising acts of violence at places of worship. In fact, 39% report these safety concerns have led them to change how often they attend in-person services, according to new research from Verkada conducted online by The Harris Poll among 1,123 U.S. adults who attend a religious service or event at least once a month. Read Now

  • AI Used as Part of Sophisticated Espionage Campaign

    A cybersecurity inflection point has been reached in which AI models has become genuinely useful in cybersecurity operation. But to no surprise, they can used for both good works and ill will. Systemic evaluations show cyber capabilities double in six months, and they have been tracking real-world cyberattacks showing how malicious actors were using AI capabilities. These capabilities were predicted and are expected to evolve, but what stood out for researchers was how quickly they have done so, at scale. Read Now

  • Why the Future of Video Security Is Happening Outside the Cloud

    For years, the cloud has captivated the physical security industry. And for good reasons. Remote access, elastic scalability and simplified maintenance reshaped how we think about deploying and managing systems. Read Now

Most   Popular

New Products

  • EasyGate SPT and SPD

    EasyGate SPT SPD

    Security solutions do not have to be ordinary, let alone unattractive. Having renewed their best-selling speed gates, Cominfo has once again demonstrated their Art of Security philosophy in practice — and confirmed their position as an industry-leading manufacturers of premium speed gates and turnstiles.

  • 4K Video Decoder

    3xLOGIC’s VH-DECODER-4K is perfect for use in organizations of all sizes in diverse vertical sectors such as retail, leisure and hospitality, education and commercial premises.

  • QCS7230 System-on-Chip (SoC)

    QCS7230 System-on-Chip (SoC)

    The latest Qualcomm® Vision Intelligence Platform offers next-generation smart camera IoT solutions to improve safety and security across enterprises, cities and spaces. The Vision Intelligence Platform was expanded in March 2022 with the introduction of the QCS7230 System-on-Chip (SoC), which delivers superior artificial intelligence (AI) inferencing at the edge.