Drone interference, steep terrain make wildfire fight difficult

TEHACHAPI, Calif. (KBAK/KBFX) - Fire crews are still working to put out the Antelope Fire that started Wednesday near Tehachapi.{} It was sparked by lightning and has now burned 45 acres.More than 150 firefighters are working to put it out, but at first someone flying a drone in the area made things frustratingly difficult.Firefighters had to shut down their air operations for 30 minutes as a safety precaution because the drone was in the way of helicopters.That's 1,800 seconds that really, really count."It was hot, the fire was moving, and we needed those air resources," said Capt. Tyler Townsend of the Kern County Fire Department. "It was a pretty crucial part of the fire because it was mid-afternoon."Now, Townsend said it's up to the Kern County Sheriff's Office to find out who was operating the drone so that they can hopefully be arrested."We've heard about it so much in the news with other fires," he said, "so at this point you would think people know better."In Kern County, so far it's never been a problem.{} Mark Pafford of the Kern County District Attorney's office said they haven't prosecuted a single case involving drones, but now they could be getting ready for their first."If a law enforcement agency arrests someone using a drone who is interfering with emergency personnel, the DA's office will review the facts and the law as we do all cases," he wrote in a statement.Another big challenge in fighting the blaze had to do with the steep terrain.{} The fire was started by lightning, and it has been moving quickly because it's so hot outside ever since."Yesterday was stormy," said Townsend.{} "Thunder, lightning, but no rain... the fire is very active, very hot."On Thursday, the weather wasn't much different.{} More lightning started some more fires, but those were taken down quickly.{} Numbers released Thursday morning show the blaze at 35 percent containment, but Townsend thinks that it will be fully contained by Friday.