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ByKeithRidler The Associated Press BOISE, IDAHO WhenBrian Cresto and his fellow fire- fighters fly toward a wild- fire at just a few hundred feet off the ground, he's scouting for the best spot for them to land when they parachute down. Lately, he's also been keepinganeyeoutforhobby drones that could take out their twin-engine propel- ler craft before it climbs to 1,500 feet, where the eight smokejumpers exit. "It's dangerous anytime you drop an aircraft down to a certain level," said Cresto, a smokejumper with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management. "Drones are starting to be a part of that conversation." Hobby drone ownership has spiked in recent years, and more and more of the devices have been spotted flying illegally over active wildfires, where they can endanger the airplanes and helicopters being used to battle the blazes. It's a high-tech problem, and federal authorities are thinking high-tech to stop it: The U.S. Interior Depart- ment is working with drone makers and mapping com- panies to create a system that uses smartphone apps already on the market to quickly alert drone fliers to temporary flight restric- tions at wildfires. Initial attacks on a wild- fire are crucial, but fire- fighting aircraft can't fly if a drone is in the restricted area because a collision could be catastrophic, offi- cials say. Retardant bombers and helicopters typically fly even lower than smoke- jumpers, at just above the trees or rooftops, and have little time to react in an emergency. A drone colli- sion could take out an en- gine or break a windshield. The devices also can get sucked into a helicopter's intake or hit a rotor. In just the past week, drone sightings have grounded aerial firefighters on three different days at a Utah blaze that has forced theevacuationof100homes. Utah Gov. Gary Herbert gov- ernor said those evacuations might have been avoided if not for the drones. According to Federal Avi- ation Administration rules, hobby drones are limited to 400 feet above ground level and within sight of the op- erator. But internet videos show a stream of violators, including at wildfires. "I've heard sometimes that at a wildfire, there might be 20, 30 guys out there flying their quadcop- ters," said Patrick Harper of the Meridian-based Idaho Drone Co. Wildfires tend to attract spectators, including drone pilots who can use their devices to capture stun- ning aerial footage from a unique perspective. Authorities across the U.S. recorded 20 incidents in which drones flew too close to wildfires last year, with more than half hinder- ing firefighting efforts. It has happened again at least nine times so far this year. In Utah, a helicopter pi- lot refused an assignment after one of the recent near-drone collisions, fire spokeswoman Carissa Sil- vis said. A $1,000 reward is being offered for informa- tion leading to the drone pi- lot's conviction. On Thursday, hobby drones grounded flight op- erations at an Arizona fire where more than 15,000 people are under pre-evac- uation notice. The Interior Depart- ment hopes the new smart- phone notifications will keep drone fliers at a safe distance. Its plan is to post data online that companies can start using in August to keep the notification apps up-to-date. "It will be successful if we are able to provide real- time information and have it depicted on those map- ping programs," said Brad Koeckeritz, the depart- ment's division chief for un- manned aircraft systems. The next step is asking drone builders to make it possible for drone opera- tors to activate systems that would automatically pre- vent a drone from entering temporarily restricted air- space, Koeckeritz said. TECHNOLOGY Agencyenlistshigh-techhelp keeping drones from wildfires DAMONARTHUR—THERECORDSEARCHLIGHT,FILE Peter Koerber, a pilot and air tactical officer with the U.S. Forest Service, talks about the hazards of flying drones over wildfire areas during a news conference in Redding. The Associated Press LOS ANGELES Firefight- ers battling fires raging through Western states are contending with both weather and human in- terference, but some prog- ress is being made. Here is a look at the largest fires Thursday: California Cooler weather helped crews fighting two fires that burned more than eight square miles of chap- arral and brush in the Angeles National Forest and foothill communities northeast of Los Angeles. The fires were 15 percent contained. More than 1,300 homes were evacuated during the four-day-old blaze, but around half have been al- lowed back. On Thursday, authorities allowed hundreds of evac- uated residents to return briefly to homes in Azusa and Duarte to gather be- longings but they may not be allowed back perma- nently for several more days, officials said. One of fires broke out Monday morning when a car ran off a highway. No homes have burned. Southward, near the San Diego County border with Mexico, a nearly 11-sqaure- mile fire was 20 percent contained after burning five homes and 11 outbuild- ings. The blaze still threat- ened 200 homes. A heat wave coupled with nightly wind gusts drove the fires earlier in the week before slightly cooler weather took hold, but National Weather Ser- vice forecasts warned that red flag conditions of ex- treme fire danger could re- turn by evening. Utah Crews battling a light- ning-caused fire in south- ern Utah have faced record heat, nearly inaccessible terrain and, now, drone in- truders. Drones have been seen three times in three days, forcing crews to ground firefighting aircraft. One drone came within feet of a helicopter, fire officials said. The fire has burned about a square mile near Pine Valley, north of St. George, and prompted the evacuation of 185 homes. Visiting the scene on Wednesday, Gov. Gary Her- bert said evacuations might not have been needed if drones hadn't interrupted fire operations. The Washington County Sheriff is offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the drone operator. Colorado A forest fire near the Wyoming line threatened about 40 cabins after ex- ploding in size to more than eight square miles, federal fire officials said. Shifting winds sent the fire surging Wednesday from a single square mile. Trees killed by a beetle in- festation fueled the flames in and around Routt Na- tional Forest, 140 miles north of Denver and 2 miles from Wyoming. The deadwood made it too dangerous to send crews into the trees to bat- tle the flames so they were attacking the fire's perime- ter, fire information officer Brian Scott said. While the weather was cooler, firefighters were keeping an eye on the sky. There was a chance of thunderstorms that pro- duce little rain but might bring dangerously erratic wind gusts. "Then it's anybody's guess where those flames will go," Scott said. Arizona In eastern Arizona, fire- fighters managed to cor- ral nearly half of a fire that roared through about 67 square miles of pine, ju- niper and brush on an Apache Indian reservation. The fire was 45 percent contained. More than 15,000 people in Pinetop-Lakeside, Show Low and nearby mountain communities still were be- ing told to be ready to evac- uate if necessary. But there was no repeat of a wind shift on Father's Day when the fire grew 14,000 acres in a single day. Instead, crews managed to light backfires that drew a "black line" around the south end of the blaze, fire information spokeswoman Rita Baysinger said. "They're really working their hearts out and I think we've turned a corner," she said of fire crews. Temperatures that hit 100 degrees earlier in the week were down to the mid-90s. There was a slight chance of a thunderstorm coming but it could bring only gusty winds, not much rain, she said. On Wednesday, there were unconfirmed reports of two drones in the fire area but aircraft opera- tions weren't halted, Bay- singer said. "That can be extremely serious and life-threaten- ing for firefighters on the ground," she said of the un- manned aircraft. Nevada Fire crews in north-cen- tral Nevada have fully con- tained a wildfire that's less than a square mile and burning in a remote area north of Gabbs, about 120 miles east of Carson City. A fire line has been drawn completely around the blaze that was burn- ing in grass and brush near Lodi Valley, fire offi- cials said. Crews halted the ad- vance of the flames over- night and remained on the scene Thursday mop- ping up and putting out hotspots near Lodi Valley. WEST Wi ld fi re s st il l ra ge b ut s om e pr og re ss b ei ng ma de NICK UT — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS A firefighting helicopter makes a water drop over a wildfire near Bradbury on Wednesday. By Matthew Brown and Gillian Flaccus The Associated Press PORTLAND, ORE. Federal investigators on Thursday blamed Union Pacific Rail- road for a fiery oil train de- railment along the Oregon- Washington border, saying the company failed to prop- erly maintain its track. Preliminary findings on the June 3 derailment in the Columbia River Gorge raise questions about why the company didn't find the broken bolts that trig- gered the wreck when it in- spected the tracks right be- fore the derailment. Union Pacific faces potential pen- alties for safety violations, officials said. The Associated Press obtained the findings ahead of their Thursday release. Advanced electronic brakes proposed by reg- ulators could have made the derailment less severe, Federal Railroad Adminis- trator Sarah Feinberg said. The brakes could have re- duced the number of cars that went off the tracks and prevented the one that first burst into flames from being punctured, officials said. "We're talking about up- grading a brake system that is from the Civil War era," Feinberg said. "It's not too much to ask these compa- nies to improve their brak- ing systems in the event of an accident so fewer cars are derailing." 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