New York State Police have a new tool flying above to help response to emergencies.

By the end of March, State Police say 18 drones will be used throughout the state -- with two in each unit.

The hope is to use them for things like scene reconstruction, flooding assessments and crime scene documentation. They’re already being used in search and rescues.

Each model costs about $7,000 and all but two of them were donated by the Trooper Foundation.

"We wanted to get the best bang for our buck,” said Captain Scott Reichel, who is a part of New York State Police Planning and Research. “This particular drone is a good commercial style drone. It’s used in cinematography, has good camera capability. As you see, it has pretty good air worthiness."

The drones aren't perfect -- they can't be flown in all types of weather and have a difficult time on windy days.