December 20, 2021 – As cases of COVID spike and the spread of the Omicron variant intensifies in New York City, Mayor Bill de Blasio is debating on plans to halt or move forward with the traditional New Years Eve celebration in Times Square.
Throughout most of the weekend leading to the start of the week, long lines could be seen outside multiple COVID-19 testing sites in Times Square and Soho, Manhattan. Some stood in line for hours in hopes of getting tested.
According to a statement made by Mayor De Blasio during a Covid briefing, new testing sites will be added around the city this week and a decision on NYE plans will be made sometime before Christmas.
“We’re looking at Omicron but remember it’s an outdoor, vaccination-only event. We’re talking to the Times Square alliance about making the event even more protected.” de Blasio said.
The record number of patients with Covid was around 15,000 in spring of 2020. The new average numbers of cases today have seen an increase and are back up to around 1,000 hospitalized Covid patients due to the Omicron variant.
Video by Oliya Scootercaster and Kevin RC Wilson (FreedomNewsTV)
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