The Arizona Emergency Information Network has reported that an air attack coordinator flying on the Coldwater Fire on Saturday spotted a drone which forced a halt of air operations.
The Coldwater Fire is located about 4 miles south of Clints Well, within 1 mile east of State Route 87. It has burned approximately 5,800 acres.
According to Arizona Emergency Information Network (AzEIN), the drone was seen within the Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) area and grounded the helicopter assigned to the fire until it was safe to resume any needed flying operations.
It is illegal to operate a private drone near any wildfire. Drones near wildfires create a serious safety hazard for fire aircraft and result in aircraft being grounded immediately.
On Saturday, the air attack fixed-wing pilot, reported the private drone within the TFR.
In the same area on Saturday the incident commander ordered a qualified Unmanned Aircraft System or “drone” assigned to the fire to fly several operations. The drone was used to drop small detonation devices for ignitions during burnout operations in places hard to ignite by hand and it also flew reconnaissance missions.