SoylentNews is people
SoylentNews
US firefighters have condemned drone owners who flew their craft near forest fires and grounded helicopters being used to douse flames.
Lives were put at unnecessary risk because helicopters could not fly, said fire department officials. The helicopters were helping to contain a large wildfire in San Bernadino county over the weekend. Five drones spotted hovering over the fire were thought to be shooting video for their owners.
The activity of the drones meant helicopters were grounded for about 20 minutes, Eric Sherwin of the San Bernadino fire department told CNN.
[...]
"When a hobby drone is flown into a fire area, incident commanders have no choice but to suspend air operations and ground aircraft until the drone is removed from the area," it said.The fire department issued images that were shared on social media, warning drone owners to stay away from fires. "If you fly, we can't," they said.
US rules governing drone use mean any pilot caught flying their craft over a disaster area that has temporary flight restrictions in place could be fined up to $25,000 (£16,000). It is not clear whether the FAA is going to investigate who was piloting the drones over the Interstate 15 fire.
Drones have hindered firefighters in California at least four times before now, sometimes stopping flights for up to 90 minutes.
(Score: 1) by DutchUncle on Tuesday July 21 2015, @03:28PM
I think it's not about the flying devices; it's about the video. Yes, RC planes have been around, but they weren't carrying high quality video until recently, and certainly not LIVE video, so there was no benefit to risking your RC plane near a fire. And there have always been fire spectators, but they took the risk of getting close in person (I knew someone in NYC like this). The newest part of the equation is the ability to be a close-up spectator with little personal risk and only moderate financial risk (losing the vehicle and camera). Rubbernecking for the new century.
(Score: 2, Insightful) by anubi on Wednesday July 22 2015, @08:07AM
The armed forces of the United States is currently undergoing some military exercises of mixing military into public areas - apparently exercising for riot control.
It is known as "Jade Helm 15" - running from July 15, 2015 to September 15, 2015.
There are many people out there who think there may be something more sinister going on - as several WalMarts have closed "for plumbing problems"... for six months.
Many people are very concerned these WalMarts are being repurposed for military use, as it is already well known that WalMart and our Government are in bed together. ( Which I cannot say is a bad thing... WalMart has the most advanced logistics and supply chain management for consumer goods on the planet ).
Personally, I am on edge, as I lived through the 2000 "dot-com" crash, the 2007-8 "mortgage crisis" crash, and we are again coming right up on another election cycle and I think this one is going to be a "car title loan and student loan" crash. Love that speedy cash. Again, deliberately caused by the FED hiking key interest rates. Only this time, the FED will not be able to drop the interest rates another four percent to try to restart the stalled economy. The rates are now zero as the FED tried to inject liquidity into the spending class by getting them yet deeper into debt. Looks like a perfect storm brewing. So I have been paying these conspiracy theorists a little more heed.
Another thing that makes me fear the FED preparing to "pull the plug" is the abundance of TV "flip this house" type programming. I have noted late night TV has been full of this kind of programming several months prior to the last crashes. The TV programs push free seminars, of which it appears the bankers are trying to stoke up a buying frenzy among anyone who will listen to them... knowing all the time that when the rates go up, cash flows throttle back, people won't be able to pay the note, and the house plus all the payments fall right back into the hands of the banker. Every eight years. Rinse, lather, repeat. Make money.
Our government has abused its privileges in the past. Talk to the people of Tuskegee, Alabama for more on this. Got the whole town messed up with syphilis. On purpose. In secret.
So, no wonder a lot of people think our Government is preparing for martial law. I sure get the idea they are. What else can they do if they can't feed the welfare crowd? People, too, will go wild just like the dogs of Detroit did when the support systems fail.
Now, here's a guy who has a drone and is using it to see if anything fishy is going on at his local closed WalMart in Florida. [youtube.com]
This is exactly the reason I support the public having drones.
I have seen way too much fishy stuff on the internet, and really welcome the average joe that lives close to the hotspot to take an interest in it and report back what he is seeing.
Traditional news sources have become so owned by special interests and spun to corporate cues that one has no idea what really happened.
There are a helluva lot of people out there just trying to panic the people into buying doomsday investments, and they seem very well funded.
I get the idea there is no better investment one can make than having the best possible relationship with one's neighbors. And I mean networks to help each other out. Physically. No-one wants a mooch hanging around. I believe just having stuff is gonna get you killed. Have tools. Know how to use them. And help your neighbors. If this happens, its happening to all of us.
I do not think doomsday is around the corner, but I am not sure its not in the picture.
But I do believe another hiccup like 2007-8 is in the picture along with a lot of people losing their houses and cars again.
Comments? Am I full of crap?
"Prove all things; hold fast that which is good." [KJV: I Thessalonians 5:21]