Federal regulators prohibit drone flights in dozens of locations across New Jersey

WASHINGTON — The Federal Aviation Administration is temporarily barring drone flights over critical infrastructure at more than 20 locations in New Jersey.

The restrictions, announced Thursday, come amid a flurry of reported drone sightings that have raised concerns across the Garden State and beyond.

Homeland security officials continue to insist “there is no public safety threat relating to the reported drone sightings,” the agency said in a statement, but said the temporary flight restrictions were issued “out of an abundance of caution.”

Locations covered by the temporary restrictions, which last for 30 days, include unspecified facilities in Jersey City, Camden, Elizabeth, Kearny, Bayonne and Bridgewater.

In a joint statement earlier this week, authorities from DHS, the FBI, the FAA, and the Department of Defense said the vast majority reported unexplained drone sightings are actually general aviation planes or passenger jets, or commercial and hobbyist drones.

“Having closely examined the technical data and tips from concerned citizens, we assess that the sightings to date include a combination of lawful commercial drones, hobbyist drones, and law enforcement drones, as well as manned fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and stars mistakenly reported as drones,” the agencies wrote.

Still, mounting concern and speculation about drones has prompted a dramatic spike in the number of people pointing lasers at airplanes flying overhead, the FAA said.

“In New Jersey, laser strikes are up significantly in the month of December. Pilot reporting has increased 269% over the same period last year,” the agency said in a statement. “Aiming a laser at an aircraft is a serious safety hazard and a violation of federal law.”