On Saturday, an aerial drone crashed into the stands at the Virginia Motorsports Park during the Great Bull Run, injuring four to five people.
Poynter originally reported that the drone belonged to TV station WTVR-Channel 6, but that was apparently not accurate. “In fact, due to liability concerns, WTVR does not use drones in any of its news or broadcast coverage,” the station’s general manager Stephen P. Hayes told Poynter.
The Washington Post’s article about the crash still reports “the drone was being used to capture video of the event” for the station. But WTVR on its site says, “The drone was not being operated by nor was it recording video for WTVR-TV.”
So who actually owns the drone? Maj. William Knott of the Dinwiddie County Sheriff’s Office said he’s not aware who the drone belongs to. Request for comment from Hayes about how the misinformation got out there was not immediately returned.
Update: Maj. Knott says the department will “attempt to identify” the drone owners: “I spoke with the head of Dinwiddie County’s Public Safety Department who was at the event when the crash happened and assisted with the treatment of the few minor injuries. He does not know the identity of the owners at this time. We will attempt to identify the owners and will work with the management of the Motorsports park to address the use of these ‘drones’ at future events.”
Second update: Hayes says he believes the incorrect information originated with the Washington Post. “We don’t know how” the incorrect info got out there, Hayes said. He guessed that, because his station had video of the drone crash, outlets inferred that it was their drone.