Waddington and Dufferin area
criminal charges and lawsuits could result
On August 05,
2016, BC Hydro contacted the Nanaimo RCMP to report hydro crews had been
dispatched with taking down 50 lb test fishing line wrapped around power lines
in the Waddington and Dufferin area. As well line had been wound around trees,
across road ways, over houses and through yards.
Nanaimo RCMP, as
well as the BC Hydro crews, believe unknown persons were using a drone to fly
the wire around the lines. Upon further inspection it was noted a small
flashlight and headlamp were fastened to the line. Investigators believe this
was done so the suspects would be able to see where the drone was flying the
line.
There have been
similar incidents in the past near the Nanaimo Regional General
Hospital helicopter landing pad, which could cause significant problems for air
ambulances. Should the pilot not see the wire there could be drastic
consequences if the line became enmeshed in the helicopters rotator blades
causing a possible crash. BC hydro spokesperson, Ted Olynyk, states, "This
reckless behaviour puts the public and crews at risk. If an accident or outage
were to occur, those involved in this negligent behaviour expose themselves to
criminal charges and lawsuits for damages as a result of an incident. BC Hydro
will seek damages for costs of any work required to repair lines or make them
safe."
The RCMP
recognizes that guidelines and regulations around the use of Remotely Piloted
Aircraft Systems (drones) are continuing to evolve. The RCMP asks pilots to
respect the safety tips and guidelines as outlined by Transport Canada.
Some of these tips
are: fly in daylight, keep your aircraft in sight, respect the privacy of
others, don’t fly in populated areas including concerts or sporting events,
beaches or higher than 90 metres. The tips also ask operators not to fly
anywhere where they may interfere with first responders, or within 9km of an
airport.
If anyone has information on either of these two incidents, call the
Nanaimo RCMP at 250-754-2345 or contact Crime Stoppers at www.nanaimocrimestoppers.com, text
274637, keyword Nanaimo or call 1-800-222-8477.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Your comment will appear after moderation before publishing,
Thank you for your comments.Any comment that could be considered slanderous or includes unacceptable language will be removed.
Thank you for participating and making your opinions known.
Note: only a member of this blog may post a comment.