Green Day Rushed Off Stage Due to Unauthorized Drone

A drone interrupted a Green Day concert in Detroit on Wednesday evening after the band was rushed off stage due to the perceived security threat.

The concert was taking place in Comerica Park when the drone flew into the stadium at roughly 8.50 p.m. local time as Green Day was playing their 1994 song Longview.

“There was an individual that flew a drone into Comerica Park, and because of that, Green Day was taken off the stage,” Detroit Police Department spokesman Cpl. Dan Donakowski tells the Detroit Free Press. “DPD did locate the individual. He is being detained pending further investigation.”

According to Billboard, stadium security spotted the drone hovering within sight of the stage and ordered the band to leave. Green Day was alerted to the problem by crew members assembling in the wings and signaling to the band.

Once the bad exited the stage, a message appeared on the large screens that read: “Show paused: Please, standby for details.”

The audience had to wait for 10 minutes — in which time they had no idea why the show had been stopped — until frontman Billy Joe Armstrong returned to the 41,000-strong crowd and said: “We’re gonna pick up where we left off.”

The crowd in the Detroit Tiger’s stadium was still none the wise as to why the show took a brief hiatus. Green Day later explained in a since-deleted Tweet.

“Detroit! Sorry for the delay in the show tonight, Stadium security had us clear the stage while they dealt with a potential safety issue. DPD quickly resolved the situation, and we were able to continue. Thanks for understanding.”

Green Day was in Detroit for their Saviors Tours in which they perform classic albums Dookie and American Idiot in their entirety. Rancid and The Smashing Pumpkins are supporting acts.

The drone pilot will likely be in a lot of trouble with Fox 2 reporting that Detroit Police have already escalated the incident to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) which could issue a fine of $30,000.

Yesterday, PetaPixel reported that the FAA has been cracking down on unsafe drone pilots with over $340,000 worth of fines in the last two years.

Image credits: Header photo licensed via Depositphotos.