NYPD will use drones on city beaches amid lifeguard shortage

NEW YORK — Remotely operated drones equipped with flotation devices will help New York lifeguards rescue swimmers in distress during the summer season, city officials said Saturday.

The addition of drones takes place in the face of staff shortages for lifeguards, who are expected to close several kilometers of city beaches this holiday weekend.

The New York City Police Department, the New York City Fire Department, the City Parks Department and other agencies are working together to bring drones to beaches and provide aerial surveillance of swimmers in trouble starting this weekend, officials said.

NYPD Deputy Commissioner for Operations Kaz Daughtry announced the plan on Friday, calling the use of drones a “game changer.”

“Thanks to @nycmayor and @nypdpc, @NYPDnews is using technology that could save lives,” Daughtry wrote, posting a video about how drones will help swimmers in trouble. “This summer we will be using drones that will be able to deploy a flotation device to help swimmers in distress. We can also use these drones to communicate with a swimmer in distress while help is on the way.

“Enjoy the sun, New York. We have the Guard,” he wrote.

An email to the New York Police Department providing more details of the plan and where to deploy the drones was not immediately returned. An email to the mayor’s office seeking comment on the use of drones was also not returned.

The idea of using drones on city beaches arose last summer, when the city used remotely operated drones to spot sharks near the shoreline.

Fearing shark attacks like the one that befell swimmer Tatyana Koltunyuk, the city began patrolling beach waters in August, flying camera-equipped drones over the Rockaways.

Officials said the drones spotted six sharks while scanning the ocean in the weeks they were deployed, but none of the sharks came close to the shoreline.

Drone patrols have revealed a much more common danger: New York beachgoers often fight in the water, officials say.

According to the latest city statistics, 21 people died by accidental drowning in New York City in 2021.

Near drownings observed by drones have inspired the city to consider equipping some drones with automatic flotation devices.

Similar programs exist in other states, including Michigan, California and Florida.

Mayor Eric Adams announced the pilot program in February.

“They will start in Coney Island and expand from there,” Adams said at the time. “I think this could be a great addition to help save the lives of the people we lose in the summer.”

The city authorities announced that drones will not replace rescuers and will only be used as an aid tool.

If a swimmer is spotted struggling in the waves, you can fly a drone over them and notify them that help is on the way. The drone will also drop a flotation device for the float to grab onto. Officials say the floatation device inflates upon contact with water.

City officials said last week that “certain sections” of the city’s 23-mile shoreline will be closed next Memorial Day weekend because of a lifeguard shortage.

On Friday, Adams announced the city would relax some testing requirements for first responders to recruit more applicants. The city has 230 lifeguards who will be manning the beaches this holiday weekend – well short of the approximately 600 lifeguards required to fully staff all sections of the city’s beaches.

The Parks Department’s press office said Friday that “like every summer, beach lifeguard assignments depend on daily staffing and other site conditions.”

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