
New York yesterday reported its deadliest day yet during the coronavirus pandemic. While New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio says officials have seen some progress in fighting the virus, he cautions against relaxing social distancing guidelines.
“As much as we all want to get back to normal, as much as we’re all feeling like we just want to get outside and socialize again, it's not that time yet,” he tells CNN’s John Berman. “In fact, what this says…is that social distancing, the shelter in place is working. We got to stick to it to make sure we really defeat the coronavirus and to absolutely be careful it doesn't rebound back on us.”
“We surpassed the number of people who died in the World Trade Center in the last couple of days. … We've got to realize just how destructive this is,” he added.
The mayor said the city has enough ventilators to last for the week, but he’s not sure about next week due to the “unpredictable” nature of the virus. “For the first time, we got a bit of breathing room. I can tell you we can get through this week, we got great help from the federal government and the state government.
But also the number of people who need them finally is leveling off a little,” he said, but advises “we’re not out of the woods.”
De Blasio also said his administration is looking to further educate and support minority communities regarding the dangers of coronavirus, which is affecting black and Latino Americans at a higher rate. “This disease, unfortunately, it amplifies the horrible health disparities that already exist,” he said.