45.3 F
Wrightsville Beach
Tuesday, March 19, 2024

UPDATED: Wrightsville Beach reviewing citations after helicopter dollar drop at Beach Blast

Must read

Wrightsville Beach town officials were reviewing issuing citations on Wednesday after a promotional stunt at the University of North Carolina Wilmington Beach Blast on Tuesday where a helicopter dropped $1,000 in dollar bills on students at the party.

Police are considering issuing citations for littering, a $250 fine,  and for flying a helicopter under 500 feet, a $100 fine, Wrightsville Beach Town Manager Tim Owens said. The town is considering whether to issue the citations to High Tide Helicopters, of Oak Island, which piloted the helicopter, or to officials with the company staging the promotion, Wilmington startup Likeli.

“It’s something we can’t condone or allow,” Owens said. “In a family-friendly beach environment, there could be danger. We can’t allow that kind of activity, whether it be a special event or otherwise, without going through an approval process.”

Video of the stunt shows a small helicopter flying over students who were in the water and dropping a bag full of paper over the students, many of which fell into the ocean. Wrightsville Beach police said they weren’t sure if the papers were flyers or real dollar bills, but added that they weren’t able to find any leftover flyers from the drop. Students at the event said the dollars were real as promoted the stunt on its Facebook page as a cash drop of $1,000 in $1 bills.

The pilot with High Tide Helicopters said that federal regulations permitted her to fly the helicopter at lower altitudes if there is no danger to people. Owens said officials were reviewing the citations with the town attorney before issuing them.

Photo courtesy of Caleb Kuhne.

- Advertisement -spot_img

More articles

- Advertisement -spot_img

Latest articles