NYC citizens report mystery drones over Staten Island as politicians ask feds to investigate
Mysterious drones have now been spotted over Staten Island with local politicians now urging the federal government to help provide answers.
Staten Islanders reported seeing the bright-light-bearing drones in the night sky over the island on Thursday, the Staten Island Advance reports.
One such sighting was made by former Air Force Sergeant Walter Ziegler, of New Springville, who viewed the drones with binoculars from his apartment window, the Advance reports.
He describes them as having a “white light in the center and a red light on each side.”
Zeigler estimated the objects, of which there were five or six, measured about 15-feet long.
All of the sightings took place not far from the Goethals Bridge, near the island’s border with New Jersey where the drones of unknown origin have been seen since at least November 18.
Now, Staten Island politicians are seeking answers and flight restrictions over the borough.
Rep. Nicole Malliotakis released a statement calling on the feds to identify the origin of the drones.
“Following reports of unidentified flying objects that appear to be drones flying above Staten Island, I’ve requested that the Federal Aviation Administration impose temporary drone flight restrictions in the area, in addition to requesting immediate briefings from the Department of Homeland Security and Federal Bureau of Investigation,” the Congresswoman wrote in a statement.
Staten Island Borough President Vito Fossella is also calling on the feds to identify these flying objects.
“We have recently been made aware of large, military-style drones flying over parts of New Jersey during the past few weeks. It has also come to our attention from concerned residents and within the media that these drones have now been flying over Staten Island during the past few days,” Fossella wrote in the letter, according to the Staten Island Advance.
“It is odd and quite bizarre that nobody can figure out who is flying these drones, where they are coming from, and their purpose. It has been reported that some of the drones may be flying without an active transponder, adding to the concern about their whereabouts,” Staten Island’s borough president added.
The drone phenomenon caused the redirection of a medivac helicopter flying from an accident in Somerset County, NJ, on Tuesday, November 26 — spurring the Federal Aviation Administration to issue two temporary flight restrictions over Morris and Somerset counties.
The flights over New Jersey are currently under investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, according to NJ.com.
Governor Phil Murphy assured New Jersey residents the objects pose no threat last week.
New Jerseyans describe seeing dozens of these high-flying drones — some as big as dining room tables, witnesses told NBC New York
The mystery crafts were even seen in the airspace over Trump National Golf Club Bedminster and a US Army hub Picatinny Arsenal in Dover, NJ.
