Sand trucks to secure Times Square on New Year's Eve
NEW YORK — Dozens of sand trucks and "blocker" vehicles will be positioned around Times Square on New Year’s Eve to prevent terrorist truck attacks like the ones that killed nearly 100 people in Europe this year, New York City officials said Thursday.
Authorities say 65 20-ton Department of Sanitation trucks, weighted with an extra 15 tons of sand and another 100 New York Police Department vehicles will team with 7,000 officers to keep Times Square secure when an estimated 2 million people come to see the ball drop during the city's annual New Year’s Eve celebration.
“People will be safe this New Year’s Eve because we’re there along with our law enforcement partners,” police Commissioner James O’Neill said at a press conference in Manhattan. “We’re going to have one of the most well-policed, best protected events at one of the safest events in the entire world.”
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New York police are not aware of any threats directed at the New Year’s Eve celebration, O’Neill said.
“At this time, we have no direct concerns related to terrorism, to Times Square specifically or New Year’s Eve in general,” the commissioner said.
Eighty-six people were killed in July when a truck plowed its way through Bastille Day revelers in Nice, France. Another 12 were killed this month in a Christmas market truck attack in Berlin.
Those attending Saturday night’s celebration will be directed into 65 pens that hold 3,000 people each and stretch from Times Square to 59th Street.
They will go through a series of metal and radiation detectors. Umbrellas and large bags are banned as well as alcohol.
“I’m not quite sure why a million people want to stand in the freezing cold for long, long periods of time but they do,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said. “And we’ll be ready for them.”
Metro-North will be running extra Manhattan-bound trains on its lines in the early afternoon and early evening. They will also run extra overnight trains for after the New Year's Eve celebrations are over.
Helicopters will monitor the scene from overhead. Explosive-detecting dogs will fan out across Times Square and throughout the city’s subways and undercover officers will monitor suspicious activity.
“They’ll be mixing in, blending in with the crowds here in Times Square,” said Chief of Department Carlos Gomez, the New York Police Department's highest ranking uniformed position.
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City officials recently completed a $55 million renovation of Times Square, which includes widened sidewalks and new benches. As in past years, officials have removed trash bins and mailboxes, sealed manhole covers and done sweeps of parking garages and hotels in preparation for the New Year's Eve festivities.
Police here have used trucks as blocker vehicles before, though never on this scale. The sand-filled trucks were deployed in November at the Thanksgiving Day parade and on Election Day, when they were posted outside Donald Trump’s Trump Tower, at two Manhattan hotels and at a convention center Hillary Clinton’s campaign used.
Investigators also are reviewing the records of truck rental companies, said James Waters, chief of the department's counterterrorism bureau.
Officers additionally will provide security at a fireworks celebration in Coney Island and a midnight road race in Central Park. O’Neill said NYPD officers trained for large-scale events like New Year’s Eve throughout the year and will be ready.
“This is something that we do every day,” O’Neill said. “This is where everybody has got to be on their toes. I know complacency can set in at times but certainly not at an event like this. Everybody knows how important this is.”
In preventing a terrorist attack, O’Neill had few guarantees..
“Can we ensure that nothing will ever happen?” he said. “It’s an open city. It’s an open society. … If you’re coming down to Times Square, rest assured that it will be a safe venue.”
It is not clear if president-elect Donald Trump will make an appearance, O'Neill said.
"I don’t think he’s coming, but that might change, I guess," O'Neill said. Trump Tower is less than a mile away from Times Square.
The large trucks aren’t the only offering from the Sanitation Department, said Kathryn Garcia, the sanitation commissioner. About 280 employees will be on hand to clean up 40 to 50 tons of debris after the ball drops following the 60-second countdown to 2017.
Contributing: The Associated Press. Follow Thomas C. Zambito on Twitter: @TomZambito
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