![]() ![]() "If you do lock yourself in your house because you're scared, they're winning," Bloomberg said on his weekly radio show. Yet, through it all, New Yorkers were urged to keep calm and carry on. "A lot of the precautions we take, you can't see," said mayor Michael Bloomberg. A mini-army of special police units – including tanks and even an unmanned submarine – was ready in reserve. Marked and unmarked police cars drove around with number-plate scanners, looking for stolen or suspect vehicles. The police had also deployed secret radiation detectors in key parts of the city. Not surprisingly, given the immense security presence, reports of suspicious packages and vehicles soared.īut perhaps the most unnerving things were happening out of view. Teams of explosives experts using sniffer dogs patrolled the railway stations. They were reinforced by special police units with bulletproof vests and assault rifles. Troops stood guard in Penn station and Grand Central and other high-profile buildings. Portable X-ray machines were hauled into commuter rail stations and random bag searches were carried out. Boots were opened, drivers questioned and cargo manifests checked. They were set up on the Brooklyn bridge, on the tunnels under the Hudson river and outside Manhattan's main train stations.Ĭars, trucks and vans were searched. The lines of cars, yellow cabs and trucks snaking down Manhattan's long avenues were caused not by the usual dashes in and out of the city, but by police checkpoints. In the wake of an unconfirmed but scarily specific threat that three terrorists, likely to be aiming to use a car or truck bomb, had entered the country to attack the Big Apple, the city went into a kind of security lockdown. "There certainly will be particular institutions that may choose to have rules around a vaccination or testing," he told reporters, adding that the city will keep monitoring COVID-19 data and adjust its approach accordingly.The visible evidence was all over New York. Statistics show that new Covid cases have fallen from its height of 7,000 cases a day to 2,000 cases daily.ĭe Blasio did not mention whether museums, theatres or other locations would have special rules in place as they reopen. This is exactly how we get to the full reopening we're all looking forward to." "It means that we're getting back on track, that everything's going back to normal," said Francisco Krauz, a construction worker, as quoted by Reuters.ĭe Blasio noted that 6.4 million doses of vaccine have been administered in New York City and more than 42 percent of residents have received at least one inoculation. The announcement has special meaning, because not only is New York the largest city in the United States, but it was once the epicenter of the Coronavirus. "I think if we do what we have to do, we can be reopened earlier." "I don't want to wait that long," said Cuomo. "I think the best way to proceed here is to set out the city's vision," de Blasio said.Īsked about New York City's reopening plan, Cuomo said he is hopeful that the opening might even happen before July 1. While De Blasio said he had not coordinated the opening with state officials, his announcement comes one day after Governor Andrew Cuomo lifted restrictions on all nightlife. "Now we can see that light at the end of the tunnel." ![]() "We are ready to bring New York City back fully on July 1," de Blasio told a news briefing. Mayor Bill de Blasio made the announcement, noting the progress officials have seen in vaccinating the city's 8 million residents. NEW YORK CITY, New York: New York's mayor has announced that the city will "fully reopen" on July 1, after more than one year of the Covid lockdown. ![]()
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