A drone has been credited with helping to save two swimmers who were being swept out to sea at Rockaway Beach in Queens. The rescue offered a striking glimpse of how new technology is being used to keep beachgoers safe, with what officials described as a lifeguard in the sky stepping in when it mattered most.
The incident unfolded at Beach 97th Street. Crucially, it happened at a moment of heightened risk, because the lifeguards had just gone off duty for the day. With no one stationed on the sand, the two swimmers found themselves in trouble in the water with the current pulling them away from shore.
That is when a specially equipped FDNY drone came into play. The drone spotted the trouble from above and, within minutes, flotation devices were sent down from it to the struggling swimmers. The aerial vantage point allowed responders to identify the danger quickly and act before the situation worsened.
According to those involved, the timeline was remarkably fast. It took about 75 seconds from the moment the swimmers were identified to the time they had a rest tube in hand. At that point, they still had roughly another two and a half minutes before rescuers were able to make patient contact with them in the water.
The dropped flotation device proved decisive in bridging that gap. Thanks to the drone unit releasing the inflatable, the swimmers were able to hold on to it and stay afloat until help reached them. They were then pulled to safety and brought out of the water.
Both swimmers were treated at a nearby hospital following the ordeal. The quick response, combining the drone's early detection with the flotation device and the rescuers who followed, appears to have prevented a far more serious outcome at the beach.
The episode also served as a reminder of a persistent danger. The FDNY continues to warn beachgoers that staying in the water after lifeguards leave is dangerous, a message underlined by the fact that this rescue happened precisely because the swimmers were in the ocean once the lifeguards had finished their shift.