Napa earthquake: Drone video offers bird’s-eye view of damage
A new video from a privately owned drone shows an aerial view of the damage caused by Sunday’s 6.0-magnitude earthquake that rocked Napa, Calif.
Crumbling bricks, cracked facades, a collapsed carport and broken glass are among the images that appear in the nearly seven-minute video posted on YouTube .
Evan Kilkus, the video’s creator, said the footage was intended to be educational and to show “builders and building owners” the potentially destructive power of earthquakes.
“This video is also intended to show how a quadcopter/drone can be used to help and assess damage,” he wrote.
On Monday, Napa city officials said at least 49 buildings had been red-tagged, and more than 100 had been yellow-tagged.
The U.S. Geological Survey estimated the earthquake may have caused as much as $1 billion in damage.
In filming the video, Kilkus said he was cautious while flying his quadcopter and often asked for permission to film.
He did not fly his device over large crowds and maintained a close proximity to the machine.
“Of the 300-400 people around me during the five hours of off-and-on filming, not a single person objected to its use, and many people were fascinated by the tool,” Kilkus wrote.
For breaking news in Los Angeles and throughout California, follow @VeronicaRochaLA. She can be reached at veronica.rocha@latimes.com.
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