B.C. Realtor facing wildfire interference charge says he made mistake by flying drone

The McDougall Creek wildfire burns on the mountainside above lakefront homes in West Kelowna, B.C., Friday, Aug. 18, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

A Realtor charged with interfering with British Columbia wildfire-fighting operations in 2023 says he made a mistake by launching a drone on Okanagan Lake to get a photo of a burnt-out hotel.

But Derek Leippi of Kelowna, B.C., says he was unaware firefighters were still at work in the area, 10 days after the McDougall Creek wildfire caused widespread devastation and destroyed hundreds of homes.

Court records say the alleged offence occurred on Aug. 27, 2023, when Leippi says he was on his boat and launched his drone to get a photo of the destroyed hotel.

He says he didn’t know that fire suppression activities were still occurring, and he reined in his “pocket drone” as soon as he was instructed by police.

Leippi says he didn’t intend to interfere with firefighting efforts, and co-operated by giving a statement afterwards.

He says he hopes to resolve the charge, but he’s yet to speak to Crown prosecutors or to retain a lawyer.

“It was a stupid thing to do, you know, to even try to launch a drone … even if it was almost two weeks after the fires,” he said in an interview. “I guess they still were trying to snuff out some certain spots that were in the area.”

He said he wasn’t trying to film any active wildfires or intentionally interfere with wildfire operations.

“It was a mistake for sure, absolutely a mistake,” he said.

Leippi is due back in B.C. provincial court in Kelowna on Feb. 11.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 22, 2025.

Darryl Greer, The Canadian Press