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Coronavirus Updates: New York State Cancels All Sleepaway Camps

By

Elizabeth Kim

,

Sophia Chang

and

Karen Yi

Published Jun 12, 2020

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A boy walks on an obstacle course at an outdoor camp facility.

wavebreakmedia/Shutterstock

By

Elizabeth Kim

,

Sophia Chang

and

Karen Yi

Published Jun 12, 2020

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This is our daily update of breaking COVID-19 news for Friday, June 12th, 2020. Previous daily updates can be found here, and up-to-date statistics are here.

New York City is in Phase 1 of reopening now. Here's a look at preparing for the spread of coronavirus is here, and if you have lingering questions about the virus, here is our regularly updated coronavirus FAQ. Here are some local and state hotlines for more information: NYC: 311; NY State Hotline: 888-364-3065; NJ State Hotline: 800-222-1222.

Here's the latest:

6 p.m. New York state has officially cancelled all sleepaway camps this year, according to a state Department of Health press release Friday.

“Throughout this entire public health response, there isn't a single decision we have not made based on data and science, rather than emotion. Using the best currently available science and data, I have reached a decision to prohibit overnight children's camps from operating this season in New York State,” said DOH Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker in the release.

“Unlike day camps, which are approved to open June 29th, overnight camps are a difficult setting to manage social distancing and face covering and infection control practices. Overnight camps have congregate settings and sleeping arrangements in close quarters that present too many risks. In such a setting, even a single positive case in a camper or staff member could create an untenable quarantine situation and overwhelm camp health personnel that may not be able to handle a serious infectious outbreak of this nature,” Zucker said.

The state joins Connecticut and New Jersey in canceling sleepaway camps. Governor Andrew Cuomo has previously said he’s worried about the rise of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) which has so far sickened 190 children and killed three children in the state.

Day camps in the state will be allowed to open June 29th, with a slew of safety protocols set by the state DOH. New York City camp operators have complained that there has been no guidance from the city or any updates on the required parks and health department permits which typically are issued 90 days before opening.

On Friday, the mayor’s office said there was no update available yet on when the city’s day camps can receive permits.

Zucker said he understands the state’s decision to cancel sleepaway camp comes as a “disappointment”: “I have fond memories of summer sleepaway camp as a kid and I understand the role they play in childhood development and the disappointment this decision may bring to families across the state,” he said. “But amid the worst public health crisis in a century, my number one priority is the health and safety of all New Yorkers. And while infection rates are declining, we need to proceed with caution and take every step possible to avoid undoing all the progress New Yorkers have made in bending the curve and reopening the state safely and responsibly.”

One of the Staten Island ferry boats with seats marked for social distancing.

NYC Mayor's Office

MTA Ridership Statistics Show Steady Increase In Week 1 Of Phase One

4:15 p.m. As New York City marks the end of its first work week of Phase 1 of reopening, mass transit ridership is slowly returning, Mayor Bill de Blasio said at his Friday briefing.

Subway and bus ridership plummeted during the city’s shelter-in-place policy, but the numbers this week show an overall steady increase.

“We know that mass transit has struggled in the middle of this crisis, and people have been concerned, they've been worried, and understandably so,” de Blasio said Friday. “But, as per usual, New Yorkers are voting with their feet. New Yorkers are making their own decision and showing the strength and resiliency that we know is so much a part of the core and the life of this city.”

The peak of ridership in the subway system was Wednesday, with the MTA estimating 855,731 rides. That’s up 25 percent over the previous Wednesday of June 3rd, de Blasio said, though ridership is still down 84.4 percent from this time in 2019.

Subway ridership numbers for June 4-11.

MTA

Wednesday was also the highest day for bus ridership, with the MTA reporting 913,000 rides — a 23 percent uptick over June 3rd, and still a 58 percent decrease over this time in 2019.

Bus ridership statistics for June 4-11.

MTA

Other commuter metrics include a 31 percent increase in ridership on the Staten Island Ferry compared to the previous week.

De Blasio said the ferries have been marked for social distancing on seats, and face coverings are distributed at subway and ferry stations. The MTA is providing more than two million face masks as well as installing hand sanitizer stations.

He also acknowledged that vehicular traffic had increased this week. “Now, people are obviously also coming into the city with trucks, with cars, and we've talked about the fact we understand that will happen in the short term,” he said, and added, “But you do need to look at traffic coming into Manhattan as a measure of people's willingness to come back to work and to reopen businesses.”

Vehicular traffic over the East River bridges increased 17 percent this week, while over the Harlem River bridges increased 14 percent.

The city has announced 20 new miles of additional busways and bus lanes to help ease congestion from vehicular traffic, and the higher bus ridership numbers may indicate that commuter anxiety over riding the subway persists.

In an interview with the New York Post, Riders Alliance spokesman Danny Pearlstein pointed out “a higher percentage of bus riders are essential workers, and a higher percentage of bus riders depend on transit to get around”.

He added, “we want to see bus ridership continue to rise, but if buses aren’t effectively prioritized with bus lanes, buses will be trapped in gridlock.”

Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn, New York.

BEBETO MATTHEWS/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK

Floyd Bennett Field Reopens For Recreational Activities

3:00 p.m. Brooklyn's Floyd Bennett Field in Gateway National Recreation Area is reopening this weekend, the National Park Service announced Friday.

The field's reopening will allow for recreational activities such as fishing, biking and hiking — but the Ryan Visitor Center, campgrounds and the sports and archery fields remain closed.

No new fishing permits are being sold, but the NPS said permits from 2019 will be honored.

Meanwhile, Gateway's beach in Sandy Hook, New Jersey will have lifeguards stationed starting Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

While national park fee collection had been waived, Sandy Hook will resume collecting fees June 17th starting from $15 a day.

Jacob Riis and Fort Tilden's beaches, also part of Gateway, remain open for "passive recreation" only, and swimming is prohibited, according to the NPS.

NJ Attorney General Will Sue Asbury Park Over Decision To Open Indoor Dining

2:30 p.m. New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy said the Attorney General will sue Asbury Park over the city’s decision to allow indoor dining — in defiance of state restrictions. 

“We have worked with the governing body of Asbury Park to try and amicably resolve the issue of their resolution regarding indoor dining. Unfortunately, they have not done so. We have one set of rules and they are based on one principal and that is ensuring public health,” Murphy said during his daily briefing on Friday. 

Murphy said Attorney General Gurbir Grewal will file a lawsuit later today. 

The Asbury Park City council approved a resolution earlier this week to allow indoor dining beginning on Monday. Capacity must be capped at 25 percent or 50 people, whichever is less.

New Jersey will begin phase two of its reopening on Monday which includes outdoor dining but does not allow diners to eat inside.

Sidewalk scene in Williamsburg, June 11th.

Scott Lynch / Gothamist

CDC Says It Will Offer "Practical Tips" On How To Resume Activities

1:00 p.m. Recognizing the different levels of reopening occurring across the country, officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday that the agency had come up with new guidelines on how to navigate events and daily activities as the country begins to reopen.

"I know that people are eager to return to normal activity and ways of life," said Dr. Robert Redfield, the CDC director, during a telephone press briefing.

However, he added: "But it’s important to remember that this situation is unprecedented and that the pandemic is not over."

Dr. Jay Butler, the CDC's deputy director of infectious diseases who also appeared on the call, described the guidance as "practical tips for given situations," including dining, holding cookouts, as well as visiting the gym and library.

With dining, he said that people should ask if there is an outdoor dining option or to make sure that tables are positioned six feet apart. With cookouts, guests should be reminded to wash their hands before and after they eat and to use single-serve utensils.

Gym-goers should only use equipment that is cleaned after each use, and library patrons should ask about curbside pickup of books.

As with all activities, the CDC recommends wear face masks, social distancing and maintaining good hygiene practices.

The remarks by Butler and Redfield marked the first widely publicized press briefing held by the public health agency in more than three months (although in late May, Butler and Redfield did speak to reporters in an unpublicized briefing). Since that time, the country has been devastated by the pandemic, with more than two million cases and nearly 114,000 deaths.

Although the U.S. is believed to have flattened the curve of cases, the number of new deaths is still as high as 900 a day. As states reopen, the CDC is focussed on keeping the curve flat and preventing hospitals from becoming overwhelmed.

Already, 21 states have seen a rise in cases.

Butler said that going into the summer, people should follow a "general rule of thumb"—the longer the interaction and the closer you are, as well as the greater the number of people, the higher the risk of spread.

Asked about whether a resurgence would warrant a return to lockdowns, he said, "If cases begin to go up and go up dramatically... more intensive mitigation efforts may be needed again."

He added that such decisions would be made locally.

Pedestrians pass an office location for the New York State Department of Labor in Queens

Frank Franklin II/AP/Shutterstock

Comptroller Subpoenas De Blasio Administration For Records On Pandemic Response

10:00 a.m. Scott Stringer, the New York City comptroller, said Thursday that his office has issued a subpoena to the de Blasio administration for records on the city's coronavirus response.

Stringer launched an investigation in May, asking the mayor's office to provide documents sent to and from city government officials and agencies that were related to the public health emergency prior to the state's March 22nd stay-at-home order.

All told, his office asked for records between November 1st, 2019 and March 22nd, 2020.

"The City has refused to provide my office with any of the documents we need to conduct this investigation or even suggest a date when they would start producing them," Stringer said, in a statement.

He called the city's failure to comply "unacceptable."

“New York City is the epicenter of the global COVID-19 pandemic, with more than 184,000 confirmed cases and a death toll exceeding 15,000," he said, in a statement. "Every single New Yorker deserves to know what City government did to prepare and prevent the worst."

Stringer's subpoena comes on the heels of a string of damning news reports on how the state and city bungled its response to the virus, from delaying the shut down of New York City schools and businesses, underplaying its warnings to the public and a lack of coordination between Governor Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio.

On Thursday, the Wall Street Journal detailed the breakdowns in Cuomo's so-called unified hospital system that was intended to allow for the quick and efficient transfer of patients from overwhelmed hospitals.

According to the WSJ, the city asked the state twice in March for permission to activate "a centralized evacuation hub previously used for emergencies like superstorm Sandy," but was denied each time. When it finally approved, the hub was limited in its power, used to transfer patients only to Javits Center and the USNS Comfort Navy ship.

Avery Cohen, a spokesman for the mayor, called the subpoena "a political stunt."

Stringer is seeking to run for mayor in 2021.

“In the spirit of transparency, the Administration has taken all the necessary measures to preserve all documents responsive to the Comptroller’s extremely broad request without sacrificing the critical resources, personnel, and time that are necessary to preserve the health of New Yorkers and save lives,” Cohen said.

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COVID-19

covid-19 updates

coronavirus

Elizabeth Kim

Elizabeth Kim is a reporter on the People and Power desk who covers mayoral power. She previously covered the pandemic, housing, redevelopment and public spaces. A native of Queens, she speaks fluent Mandarin. Got a tip? Email [email protected]

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Sophia Chang

Sophia Chang is a former WNYC and Gothamist reporter.

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Karen Yi

Twitter

Karen Yi covers homelessness and poverty. She joined the WNYC and Gothamist newsroom in 2020. Before that, Karen covered Newark for the Star-Ledger and spent almost a decade working for newspapers in New Jersey and Florida. She grew up in Miami and has a dog named Cashew. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or Signal 917-589-1460.

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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations

Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations

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