Drone Manufacturer: Unknown
Drone Model: Unknown
Country: China
Type: Accident
Date: 2021-10-01
Applies: Nighttime
Pilot Qualifications: Unknown Status
Pilot Flight Experience: Unknown Hours
Link to External Information About This submission: https://www.vice.com/en/article/z3xp38/drone-light-show-failure-china
File Uploaded: None
Description
On the evening of October 1, a UAV show in Zhengzhou, Henan Province was suspected to have failed, and a large number of UAVs fell from the air. Emergency evacuation of site staff.
Drones fell out of the sky at a failed light show in China, prompting panicked spectators to run for cover.
A drone light show craze has taken over China over the past few years. Government departments, businesses, and tourist attractions often commission extravagant drone performances as part of their promotional campaigns.
But some of these drone light shows have gone very wrong.
During a performance staged above a mall in the central city of Zhengzhou on Friday, drones began falling from the sky in the middle of the show, hitting buildings and vehicles on the ground.
In videos posted by local media, some 200 drones are seen forming the name of the shopping mall, before dozens went dark and plummeted. Spectators were then heard shouting “be careful” and “back off” as they ran away from the devices.
A witness surnamed Wang told local broadcaster Henan TV that some 5,000 people, many of them children, were watching the show when it went awry. He said people had to run away with hands on their heads.
“More and more drones came off,” Li said. “Some flew very far away, and some hit the trees.” He said staff members let people seek refuge inside the mall and picked up the drones from the floor.
Reported Cause
Unknown.