A drone fell from the sky in Pasadena over the weekend, injuring an 11-month-old girl being pushed in a stroller by her mother, police said Tuesday.
The infant was struck by shrapnel when the privately owned "quadcopter" fell to the ground just before 6:30 p.m. Saturday on Marengo Avenue near Union Street, Pasadena police Lt. Tracey Ibarra said.
"The drone shattered, sending shrapnel flying toward the child's forehead and head and the mother's legs," Ibarra said.
The baby was treated at Huntington Memorial Hospital for a large bruise to her forehead and a quarter-inch laceration on the side of her head, according to the lieutenant. Her 31-year-old mother was not injured, Ibarra said.
Officers located the 24-year-old owner of the drone nearby. He said he was attending an event in front of City Hall and flying the drone overhead when he lost control of it, Ibarra said.
He went to the crash scene and remained there awaiting law enforcement to arrive, she said.
The incident was documented and a report forwarded "to the Flight Standards District Office in Van Nuys for review to determine if the operator violated federal aircraft rules forbidding careless or reckless operation of an unmanned aircraft," Ibarra said.
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The Federal Aviation Administration will investigate.
"Unmanned aircraft must be operated safely so they don't endanger people on the ground and don't interfere with manned aircraft, " the agency said in a statement. "The FAA is concerned with the growing number of reports about unsafe operations, and is stepping up both its education and enforcement efforts."
Anyone who flies unmanned aircraft carelessly or recklessly can face fines from $1,000 to $25,000, depending on the seriousness of the violation, according to the FAA. The FAA has initiated more than 20 enforcement cases, settled five cases in which operators paid fines, and has proposed penalties in at least five other cases, according to the agency's statement.
FAA authorization is not required to operation a drone for hobby purposes, but there are rules regarding operation. One rule requires model aircraft to be flown below 400 feet, and not over unprotected people or vehicles.
NBC4's Jonathan Lloyd contributed to this report.
