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2021 came to largely moderate celebrations in the US with New York’s Times Square, usually the site of a million revelers on New Year’s Eve, hauntingly deserted when the ball fell.
The “crossroads of the world” was closed to the public for the first time in history due to the coronavirus pandemic.
A few hundred people, mostly front-line workers and their guests, were allowed to attend in an enclosed area with cubicles to dance.
The plaza was a blur of purple and yellow, the colors of sponsor Planet Fitness, whose logo covered attendees’ hats, posters and the stage where Mayor Bill de Blasio kicked off the ball and danced with his wife Chirlane McCray.
Some of those who performed for the benefit of millions of viewers from home included Jennifer Lopez, Miley Cyrus, Megan Thee Stallion, Cyndi Lauper and Lewis Capaldi.
The blocks surrounding the plaza were blocked and the NYPD deployed hundreds of officers to move people out of the area. They also assembled bomb-sniffing dogs and trucks filled with sand to protect themselves from potential explosions, ABC7 New York reported.
Restaurants close at 10 pm in New York City and 11 pm in Chicago. There were curfews all over the country.
However, not all states were left with cautious celebrations. In Miami, Florida, hundreds of partygoers flocked to bars and nightclubs and many seemed to give up on masks and social distancing.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has made it illegal to fine anyone who does not wear a mask and has decided not to reduce capacity inside restaurants and clubs.
This prompted people from all over the country to visit Miami to bring in the New Year. Some 80,106 people flew into Miami International Airport on December 30, local reported10.
Above: New Years Eve on December 31, 2020 and below, celebrations at the same time last year
(AP)
While other cities such as San Francisco, Las Vegas, and Boston canceled fireworks displays to discourage people from gathering in large numbers, Miami canceled their show due to high winds. Miami Beach police said on Twitter.
In Las Vegas, thousands of revelers gathered in the streets despite Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak telling people not to come and calling large gatherings “irresponsible” during a virtual press conference.
Sin City had closed its clubs and canceled fireworks in an attempt to prevent people from gathering. However, many people were photographed on the streets wearing face covers, NewsNation reported.
California also had a mild New Year’s Eve. The state has become a Covid hotspot, adding more than 32,000 news cases on December 31.
In San Francisco, the fireworks display was canceled, Christmas lights went out in Golden Gate Park, and police warned they would arrest anyone who didn’t follow the rules.
Los Angeles added 14,500 cases on December 31. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti told CNN that while there is capacity for new patients, healthcare workers are “taking shift after shift” and stretching themselves to the limit.
Despite the alarming situation, some chose to ignore the public health crisis.
Hundreds of people gathered for a concert in Valencia, north of Los Angeles, without wearing masks and ignoring social distancing guidelines, writes CBSLA.
Actor Kirk Cameron, who is openly opposed to wearing masks, threw a New Years Eve party despite warnings from public health officials, ABC7 reported.
The New York Times reported that others have secretly partied with the help of mailing lists and apps like Vybe Together. Apple removed the latter from its app store, received attention last week, and thousands of people are still waiting for their access to the app to be approved.
Los Angeles public health officials pleaded with people to stay home. The official Los Angeles Public Health account tweeted “Stay home tonight. Reduce the spread. Save a life ”dozens of times on New Year’s Eve.
As of early 2021, the US faces a total of 20 million Covid cases and 125,000 hospitalizations. Some 346,000 Americans have so far died during the pandemic.
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