Drone operator stringing up fishing line in dangerous manner, say Nanaimo RCMP
BC Hydro and RCMP say the fishing line could put crews, hospital-helicopters at risk
Police say someone appears to have used a drone to string up fishing line in a dangerous manner around Nanaimo, B.C.
Sgt. Sheryl Armstrong said BC Hydro contacted RCMP after fishing line was found wrapped around power lines, trees, through yards and across roads in the Waddington and Dufferin areas.
"This is extremely dangerous behaviour as it could cause outages, accidents," Armstrong said.
Police say they found a small flashlight and headlamp attached to the power lines, leading them to believe the suspect was flying the drone at night.
In one case, the fishing line was strung up near the helicopter landing pad for the Nanaimo hospital.
"You can imagine if a helicopter struck those wires what could happen," Armstrong said.
Police say the person responsible could face mischief charges. BC Hydro says they could also be on the hook for the cost of damage to the power lines.
"I don't know what they are doing or who is doing it, so I can't say if it's purposeful, but what I can say is that it's very negligent in what they are doing because they are putting our crews at risk and they are putting the public at risk," said BC Hydro spokesman Ted Olynyk.