by Emma QuinnSun, April 14th 2024 at 5:10 PM
Starting Monday, you may see helicopters circling the area but there's no need to panic.
That's because the New York Army National Guard black hawk helicopter crews will be conducting wildfire training drills.
The drills be along the Mohawk River between the Twin Bridges and Route 9 starting Monday at noon and ending at 4 pm.
It will continue from 10 am to 4 as needed throughout the week ending on Thursday.
The aircraft will be dropping giant orange collapsible buckets into the Mohawk River, and then returning water the river.
This replicates the skills needed to fight a wildfire.
Rangers from the Department of Environmental Conservation Forest will also participate in the training as they are often responsible for guiding Army National Guard helicopter crews onto a fire target.
The last time New York Army National Guard helicopters were used to fight a fire was in August 2022 when a fire was burning at Minnewaska State Park Reserve near Ellenville.
