A group of Canadian rockers encountered an unusual flying fan Friday night when an unauthorized drone operator filmed an impromptu music video as they performed in downtown Winnipeg.
Max Kerman, singer for Canadian alt-rock group the Arkells, said he noticed a drone “coming very close to the stage” while the band was headlining the Burt Block Party.
“I figured I just missed the memo that the festival was operating a drone,” Kerman said in a video posted to social media after the show. “Throughout the show, I sort of developed a relationship with the drone. I’d signal it to come closer and then I’d sort of push it away and it would act accordingly. It turns out, that was an illegal drone.”
Kerman made light of the situation, saying he’d heard the police had arrested the drone operator and put them in “the slammer.” He asked officers to take it easy on the perp, and, if possible, get him access to the video they filmed.
“It looked like it was going to be kind of cool footage,” he said.
While the Winnipeg Police Service confirmed officers responded to reports of an illegal drone spotted during the performance, nobody ended up in shackles as a result, said Cons. Jason Michalyshen.
“We were able to locate the operator and advise them to stop. They were very co-operative and they quite simply left the area. That was really the gist of it — nothing formal, no charges, we didn’t seize anything — we just had a conversation that they were not authorized to be operating it,” Michalyshen said.
The police spokesperson stressed privately owned drones must be operated away from bystanders, crowds, emergency operations and advertised events.
“Drone operators, it’s their responsibility to familiarize themselves with the specific laws and regulations that apply to what is essentially the intended use of any drone,” he said.
“The technology is amazing, we get it, but there are risks associated to it… People just need to be mindful of that because it’s going to compromise public safety if this drone malfunctions in any way.”
Drone operators can face fines of up to $1,000 for flying in restricted areas, according to guidelines from Transport Canada.
City police previously warned people not to illegally fly drones over crowds after more than one was spotted in the downtown area during a Whiteout street party in support of the Winnipeg Jets last April.
Michalyshen said the police service does not have access to the drone or the footage captured Friday, so the Arkells will have to connect with the operator themselves.
“We haven’t identified or heard from the operator, but in a perfect world he surfaces,” the band’s artist manager said in an email Sunday.
tyler.searle@freepress.mb.ca
Tyler Searle
Reporter
Tyler Searle is a multimedia producer who writes for the Free Press‘s city desk. A graduate of Red River College Polytechnic’s creative communications program, he wrote for the Stonewall Teulon Tribune, Selkirk Record and Express Weekly News before joining the paper in 2022. Read more about Tyler.
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