Drone that approached a helicopter in a 'threatening manner' is shot down by sheriffs as 80 protesters are arrested for demonstrating construction of oil pipeline on 'sacred' land

Protesters gather in Mandan, North Dakota, on Sunday near the route of the 1,200-mile long Dakota Access Pipeline demanding a halt to construction there

Law enforcement officials in North Dakota said on Sunday that they shot at a drone believed to be operated by protesters who are fighting the construction of an oil pipeline on land that Native Americans consider sacred.

The Morton County Sheriff's Office released a statement on Sunday in which it said an unmanned aerial vehicle had approached a helicopter in a 'threatening manner', CBS News reported.

An officer in the helicopter told law enforcement officials on the ground that the pilot and the passengers were 'in fear of their lives' because of the approaching drone.

The drone was damaged by what is being described as 'less-than-lethal' ammunition and it was landed by its operators.

Members of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe and their supporters block a roadway on Sunday. Eighty people were arrested by law enforcement

One of the arrested protesters is seen above on Sunday. Protesters have clashed with police and private security guards in an attempt to halt construction of the pipeline

An aerial drone similar to the one in this stock image was flown in what North Dakota law enforcement officials say was a 'threatening manner'

The incident occurred just west of Bismarck along the banks of the Missouri River, where protesters, police, and private security personnel have engaged in a months-long standoff over a controversial oil pipeline. 

The event was the culmination of a tense weekend during which some 80 people were arrested and a highway was blocked as protests over the Dakota Access Pipeline continued.

The Standing Rock Sioux want construction of the $3.8billion pipeline halted, saying it could taint water supplies and encroach on tribal burial sites.

The route of the pipeline, which is being built to carry crude oil, stretches from North Dakota into South Dakota, Iowa, and finally to Illinois. 

Protesters pitched an encampment on Sunday along a highway in Mandan, just west of the North Dakota town of Bismarck

Also known as the Bakken Oil Pipeline – a name it took after the oil-rich area in North Dakota – the project, which is being built by a private Texas-based company called Energy Transfer Partners, envisions the transport of 470,000 barrels of oil per day. 

Developers of the underground pipeline say that the project is necessary because it is the most cost-effective and environmentally sound way to transport crude oil.

They argue that its construction will generate thousands of construction jobs and generate tens of millions of dollars in taxes and income in the areas it crosses.

Protests supporting the tribe have been going on for months, with 269 people arrested as of Sunday. 

Protesters fear the pipeline project could potentially cause irreversible harm to the drinking water for the Standing Rock community - who live just one mile from the river - as well as the river's ecosystem. 

Hundreds of people gathered in Los Angeles on Sunday show support for activists demonstrating against the project. 

Source: DailyMail.