New York City Mayor Eric Adams Friday honored city healthcare workers, first responders, essential workers, and those who lost their lives to COVID-19 on the fifth anniversary of the first confirmed death in the five boroughs from the global pandemic that saw New York City as its epicenter.
Since the pandemic was declared in the City of New York in 2020, Adams said there have been more than 3 million cases of COVID-19 in New York City, more than 240,000 hospitalizations, and more than 46,825 people have died from the virus.
He said NYC Health + Hospitals/Elmhurst became the pandemic’s epicenter.
As emergency departments flooded with sick patients across all five boroughs, the mayor said healthcare heroes sprang into action, rushing to the frontlines to provide care for their patients and fight back against an unknown virus that, at the time, left the world wondering about its infectivity, diagnosis, and treatment.
“More than 46,000 New Yorkers lost their lives to COVID-19 in the past five years — first responders, health care workers, teachers, essential workers, and more — but all of them left a whole were someone’s family,” said Mayor Adams.
“Today, and every March 14, we will remember them. We will remember how the city came together to mask up, social distance, open up outdoor dining, test, and trace, roll out vaccines, pivot to online learning, and work together in countless other ways to keep each other safe from the virus that took one too many of our fellow New Yorkers,” he added.
“Our administration’s mission is to make New York City a safe and affordable city, and we continue to re-commit to ensuring that New Yorkers are healthy and that we are prepared for any future crises,” the mayor continued.
“Today, we honor our fellow New Yorkers lost due to COVID-19 and the contributions of all of our frontline workers who gave so much to help during such a trying time,” said Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Anne Williams-Isom. “We will forever remember the parents, siblings, grandparents, friends, and other loved ones lost to the virus, and we mark their memory today by lighting up City Hall and other buildings amber.
“It’s a reminder to hug our loved ones even tighter today and share stories of those we lost,” she added. Thank you to all of our frontline workers for what you have done and continue to do for our city. To all those touched by the virus, know that your city stands with you.”
“From the moment the first patients with COVID-19 came through the doors of Elmhurst Hospital, and every day since, our brave healthcare heroes have worked on the frontlines 24 hours a day to make sure that all New Yorkers, without exception, have the life-saving care they need,” said NYC Health + Hospitals President and CEO Dr. Mitchell Katz.
“Five years later, the lasting legacy of the pandemic for me is very clear — a strong public health system that works in lockstep with its sister agencies and that is guided by the engagement and trust of our communities is essential to the collective health of our city, and our best defense against whatever challenges we may face,” he added. “Today, we are safer and stronger thanks to the extraordinary service of so many New Yorkers and the spirit of unity that defined our response.”
“Five years ago, the COVID-19 pandemic upended life and health in our city and across the entire world,“ said New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) Acting Commissioner Dr. Michelle Morse.
“I am thankful to the DOHMH staff who worked tirelessly to protect New Yorkers throughout the emergency phase of the pandemic,“ she added. “The tools we developed are still essential for protecting New Yorkers. Vaccination — our strongest defense against not only COVID-19 but many infectious diseases — remains readily available. DOHMH will always provide New Yorkers with the information they need to stay safe and healthy.“
“Our public schools are the centers of our communities. As the city battled COVID-19, our schools served as essential resource hubs for New Yorkers of all ages. When times became difficult, our school communities stepped up to ensure our students continued learning and to support our neighbors,“ said New York City Public Schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos. “From the food service workers who helped distribute meals to the public to the school custodians who helped hand out critical PPE to families, our city is forever grateful for the immense dedication of our school staff.“
“The COVID-19 pandemic tested our city in ways we could have never imagined, yet the brave women and men of the NYPD stood unwavering in their duty to protect our communities,“ said New York City Police Department (NYPD) Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch. “We will never forget those heroes — and every New Yorker — who lost their lives during this unprecedented time. And we will continue to stand side-by-side with every first responder and all those who work tirelessly to keep this city safe, no matter the cost.“
“On the fifth anniversary of COVID-19, I want to thank the men and women of the FDNY for the hard work and dedication they displayed during that dark time,“ said Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY) Commissioner Robert S. Tucker. “Our firefighters, EMTs, and paramedics responded to a record number of calls with compassion and empathy, putting themselves at risk at a time of such terrible loss for our city. We appreciate their service, then and now.“
“Five years after a state of emergency because of COVID-19 was declared in our city, New York City Emergency Management’s commitment to 24/7 readiness endures,“ said New York City Emergency Management Commissioner Zach Iscol. “We carry with us the memory of lives lost, countless families forever changed, and the personal impact this crisis had on each of us as New Yorkers. During the pandemic, together with our city agency partners, we transformed vacant spaces into alternate care sites, delivered millions of meals to our neighbors, and surged medical personnel.
“We built isolation hotels, translated critical messages into 25 languages, and forged deep partnerships with community leaders, all while innovating by establishing ‘cascading impacts’ planning and remote emergency operations center activations to navigate the overlapping crises,“ he added. “Our city’s density, diverse communities, and the ever-evolving landscape of emergencies mean that our agency must remain dynamically adaptive. As we mark this somber anniversary, we reaffirm our dedication to ensuring that our agency remains the bedrock of New York City’s preparedness and resilience, honoring the memory of those we lost by building a safer future for all.“
“On this fifth anniversary of the COVID-19 pandemic, we join our city in memory of all those lost and in appreciation for everyone who contributed to the response,“ said New York City Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Jason Graham. “The pandemic tested our agency in ways not experienced since the World Trade Center attacks of 2001, and the dedicated public servants at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner met the challenge of a generation with nimbleness, innovation, and compassion.
“Our personnel embraced new roles, collaborated with partners across government and industry, and promptly stood up mortuary facilities to accommodate the largest influx of decedents in our history with dignity and care. In addition to helping local hospitals cope with the initial surge in deaths from COVID-19, our office established four disaster portable morgues and a long-term storage facility to care for thousands of decedents until they could be reunited with their families,“ he added.
Adams said New Yorkers sprang into action during the pandemic to stop the spread, social distance, get tested, and, eventually, get New Yorkers vaccinated.
He said all city agencies worked to create initiatives to keep New Yorkers healthy and protect them from the virus.
The mayor said the city gave out more than 300 million pieces of personal protective equipment (PPE), using a whole-of-government approach to reach all corners of the city, including New York City Housing Authority residents and people with disabilities.
In an unprecedented move, Adams noted that New York City Public Schools administrators, teachers, and staff closed all schools and moved every classroom to remote learning to ensure that the city’s more than 1 million public school students could continue to learn.
He said the city also opened Regional Enrichment Centers to serve as child care centers for first responders, health care workers, and transit workers while schools were closed to ensure uninterrupted health care and other essential services.
