By Gus Saltonstall

Drones will take over the night sky on New Year’s Eve in Central Park.

Following the cancellation this year of the New York Road Runners (NYRR) annual firework celebration in Central Park due to the historic drought the city faced this fall, the running organization is pivoting to a different type of light show.

“We plan to celebrate our runners with a small, event-facing, drone show during this year’s NYRR Midnight Run, in lieu of fireworks,” a spokesperson from NYRR told West Side Rag.

The drone show will not be open to the public, though.

The drones are expected only to be seen from within the event’s “frozen zone,” which is on the 72nd Street Transverse, south of Bethesda Fountain. The specific zone is only open to registered runners and one guest per participant.

Registration for the Midnight Run is now closed.

The show will deploy 500 drones that display images related to running, and will only go on weather permitting.

The exact plans are still being finalized.

The ban on fireworks was lifted in New York City on December 9 following periods of added rainfall, but NYRR decided to still turn to the New Year’s Eve drones after the fireworks show was announced as canceled.

A Central Park drone show in October, 2023, received pushback from New York City bird organizations and Upper West Side elected officials over safety concerns for the animals.

Drones have been a popular subject in the news recently, with reported sightings skyrocketing in both New Jersey and New York. In a joint statement on Monday, four federal agencies released a statement saying that the reported sightings are a combination of airplanes, helicopters, stars, and drones being flown legally.

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