Mistletoe drone designed to snap Xmas kisses cuts woman’s face
A drone equipped with a sprig of mistletoe and a cam for taking pictures of kissing couples accidentally flew into a woman’s face and cut her nose in a New York restaurant.
TGI Friday’s chain introduced Mobile Mistletoes in some of its locations in the US and the UK in December. They are manually operated drones of different sizes – from 25.1 cm to 58.42cm – complete with mistletoe and a camera. The holiday idea was launched to “help inspire more guests to come together underneath the mistletoe and experience #Togethermas this Christmas,” says the promotional video.
However, New York photojournalist, Georgine Benvenuto, ended up with a bloody nose at the chain’s Sheepshead Bay restaurant last Thursday evening, when she went to take pictures of people kissing under the mistletoe.
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The drone operator was trying to show a reporter how it could land on her hand, but the drone careered off and collided with Benvenuto who was standing about a foot away.
“It took off part of my nose and cut me here, right under my chin,” Brooklyn Daily cited her as saying.
“I couldn’t get it off because I guess the mistletoe part had fishing wire on it - that’s how it was attached - and it got caught in my hair and it kept twirling and twirling and twirling while this thing is on my nose,” she explained to nymag.com.
TGI Friday’s Dumb “Mistletoe Drone” Nearly Chops Woman’s Nose Off http://t.co/70iuQ5lhRspic.twitter.com/pAeRuxaZQX
— Mashup (@mash_social) 8 декабря 2014
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“I have covered active crime scenes, terrorist strikes, etc. and survived them all, unscathed. The most dangerous assignment to date was covering this drone story,” Benvenuto wrote on her Facebook page.
The drone operator reportedly didn’t come to her assistance and according to the Brooklyn Daily, he actually blamed Benvenuto for the incident.
Drones used indoors must have special guards to keep the blades covered. However, none of the drones in the restaurant, even the biggest one with six blades, was equipped with such a feature.
TGI Friday’s didn’t comment or acknowledge the injury, the Independent reports.
The use of drones in the US is still a largely unregulated affair. Nevertheless, some guidance from the Federal Aviation Administration already exists. The drone must be kept in the user’s line of sight and be clearly visible from his or her position on the ground. Besides, devices for indoor use should have guards to protect the blades.
