A female tourist from the mainland illegally operated a drone in Golden Lotus Square in Zape at around midday yesterday, which then crashed onto the top of the “Lotus Flower in Full Bloom” sculpture there after it malfunctioned, local Chinese-language media reported.
According to the reports yesterday, the woman told the police shortly after midday yesterday that when she was operating the drone, it fell on top of the sculpture due to a malfunction where it was then trapped so that she could not retrieve it.
Firefighters arrived at the scene where one of them climbed up to the top of the sculpture with the help of a ladder and retrieved the drone, according to the reports.
A drone is formally known as an unmanned aerial vehicle.
The police said that the woman had violated the city’s drone-operation rules, adding that they have transferred the case to the Macau Civil Aviation Authority (AACM) for follow-up action, according to the reports.
The six-metre-high sculpture was inaugurated on December 20, 1999 when the Macau Special Administrative Region (MSAR) was established.
The sculpture, located near the Macau Grand Prix Museum, is one of Macau’s most popular tourist attractions as it symbolises Macau’s return to the motherland.
This handout photo released by the Municipal Affairs Bureau (IAM) last month shows the “Lotus Flower in Full Bloom” sculpture in Golden Lotus Square at that time.
