New Yorkers are keeping their eyes to the sky this week as reports of drone activity grow across the country, especially in the Northeast.

Federal and state agencies are investigating a large number of mysterious drones, but say so far, nothing indicates the devices pose a national or public safety threat. Investigators say on any given day, thousands of commercial, hobby and law enforcement drones are lawfully flying in the skies.

First-responder drone pilots from different agencies around New York state came together Thursday for a training on unmanned aircraft systems, or UAS. Law enforcement officers say their drones are needed now more than ever. 

“Coming into this time of season, we do get a lot of calls for missing people," said Garrett Gainor, assistant UAS coordinator for the New York State Police.

When people go missing, time is of the essence. Drones can drastically help search teams in the field and according to the state Division of Criminal Justice Services, over 6,500 adults were reported missing in New York state last year.

“You can now see further, search faster, especially this time of year, when the weather and the temperature starts dropping. Time becomes a factor in trying to find someone," Gainor said.

The purpose of the training was for departments to get together and train each other on different equipment while sharing knowledge.

“Different things that we utilize with the drones, different camera systems, thermal imaging, night vision," Gainor said.

With the goal of saving time during an emergency, they’re collaborating.

“So when these pilots come together, it's not the first time they've met. It's also not the first time that they've seen each other's equipment and how it operates. So it's more of a seamless integration, which is what we're trying to work towards," Gainor said.