First let me say that I am a licensed pilot, retired firefighter, and a hobby video production enthusiast. I have to say this guy was totally in the wrong. He was endangering the lives of the people around the area of operation, of the drone. As a hobbyist he is prohibited from flying in residential areas other than his own backyard. The FAA clearly has outlined those rules which are allowable for drone operation. As a hobbyist, they are not allowed to fly over people without their knowledge of the drones presents and operation. The drone operator did acquire permission to fly over the fire scene. This unauthorized operation over the fire scene, was a distraction to those working in the fire scene. As he is not a news reporter, he has no business nor legitimate right to be in the fire scene in any way shape or form. Although it is unclear at what altitude he was operating the drone, I would gamble that he was not in communication with local airport / Air traffic control authorities, notifying them of the drones operation at the fire scene. This made him a risk to other aircraft in the area. In my opinion, this guy has no leg to stand on when it comes to suing the fire department for the loss or damage to his drone.
As a pilot I do not care for drone operations where there is no contact with local air-traffic control. Those types of operators are a menace and a danger to those in the general aviation community. Only takes a few to ruin it for the manny. With the lack of control, for Drone operations, I see a day coming in the future, when a drone collides with an aircraft causing it to divert or have any emergency landing procedure, and that operator sought out and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Rather than trying to sue the fire department for damage to his drone, this guy should be thankful that they are not prosecuting him.
Drone operations can provide excellent video footage or video coverage when done in the right way. This guy was not doing it in the right way.