BRANCHBURG, NJ - A report emerged on Thursday, December 5th, sharing the details about the mysterious drones that were hovering over New Jersey that kept a medevac helicopter from transporting a seriously injured patient to a hospital.
According to the New York Post, the helicopter was flying to an accident in Branchburg Township in Somerset County on Tuesday, November 26th, but was unable to pick up the crash victim due to drones hovering in the landing zone. Brian Serge, supervisor of security at Raritan Valley Community College said two security officers closed roads to secure the crash site in preparation for the helicopter to land.
However, that request was then canceled by the local fire captain just before 7:00 p.m. due to the hazardous presence of the drones. Serge said, "We never found out what the actual drones were. It's kind of a mystery. We were asking around about that, but nobody knew anything."
This incident comes after a flurry of other drone sightings over the last few weeks in and around central New Jersey, including near President-elect Donald Trump's Bedminster golf course. According to local officials, the drones have been spotted hovering in groups for hours on the vicinty of the Raritan River on a nightly basis.
One Parsippany woman claimed that she saw up to five of the mysterious drones buzzing around late in the evening on Sunday, December 1st. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has issued two temporary flight restrictions over Morris and Somerset counties following several reports of the mysterious aircraft activity in the airspace over Trump National Golf Club Bedminster as well as U.S. Army hub Picatinny Arsenal in nearby Dover, New Jersey.
The FAA said it received reports as far back as November 18th. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) requested the restrictions "out of an abundance of caution," as noted by an agency spokesperson. Those restrictions will remain in place until December 26th. The FBI has asked witnesses to send in any high-resolution photos they captured of the mysterious drones to its office for "further review."
As for the seriously injured person in the car crash, the Patch reported that the medical helicopter was able to land at a nearby airport and transport the driver to Morristown Medical Center. Federal law states that drone operators who conduct unsafe operations that endanger other aircraft or people on the ground could face fines up to $75,000. In addition, the FAA can suspend or revoke drone operators' pilot certificates.
The FBI began their own investigation on November 26th, 10 days after the first sightings of the drones were reported. There have not been any updates since then. The investigation remains ongoing.
According to the New York Post, the helicopter was flying to an accident in Branchburg Township in Somerset County on Tuesday, November 26th, but was unable to pick up the crash victim due to drones hovering in the landing zone. Brian Serge, supervisor of security at Raritan Valley Community College said two security officers closed roads to secure the crash site in preparation for the helicopter to land.
However, that request was then canceled by the local fire captain just before 7:00 p.m. due to the hazardous presence of the drones. Serge said, "We never found out what the actual drones were. It's kind of a mystery. We were asking around about that, but nobody knew anything."
This incident comes after a flurry of other drone sightings over the last few weeks in and around central New Jersey, including near President-elect Donald Trump's Bedminster golf course. According to local officials, the drones have been spotted hovering in groups for hours on the vicinty of the Raritan River on a nightly basis.
One Parsippany woman claimed that she saw up to five of the mysterious drones buzzing around late in the evening on Sunday, December 1st. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has issued two temporary flight restrictions over Morris and Somerset counties following several reports of the mysterious aircraft activity in the airspace over Trump National Golf Club Bedminster as well as U.S. Army hub Picatinny Arsenal in nearby Dover, New Jersey.
The FAA said it received reports as far back as November 18th. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) requested the restrictions "out of an abundance of caution," as noted by an agency spokesperson. Those restrictions will remain in place until December 26th. The FBI has asked witnesses to send in any high-resolution photos they captured of the mysterious drones to its office for "further review."
As for the seriously injured person in the car crash, the Patch reported that the medical helicopter was able to land at a nearby airport and transport the driver to Morristown Medical Center. Federal law states that drone operators who conduct unsafe operations that endanger other aircraft or people on the ground could face fines up to $75,000. In addition, the FAA can suspend or revoke drone operators' pilot certificates.
The FBI began their own investigation on November 26th, 10 days after the first sightings of the drones were reported. There have not been any updates since then. The investigation remains ongoing.
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Comments
2024-12-09T14:44-0500 | Comment by: Rick
In situations like this where they are interfering with emergency services... this would be great practice for bird hunters.