POSITIVE REACTION
Officials happy to see Sunday’s peaceful protest in Troy
RENSSELAER COUNTY, N.Y. » Officials throughout the county were pleased to see the scheduled “Rally for Black Lives” in downtown Troy on Sunday remain peaceful all day.
Rensselaer County Executive Steve McLaughlin said he and other county officials were on the roof of the county building Sunday and had drones to watch the protest in downtown Troy.
“It was exactly what we hoped for, it was peaceful,” McLaughlin said of the protest Sunday in Troy, which drew a reported 11,000 people.
“The police did a really good job and everybody there did a good job,” McLaughlin added.
Troy police and other agencies were seen throughout the downtown area on Sunday.
“[ The] protest in Troy was well attended and peaceful,” Troy Deputy Police Chief Dan DeWolf said.
Troy Mayor Patrick Madden also released a statement on how he thought the protest went.
“We appreciate the cooperation from rally organizers, participants, and public safety personnel for ensuring a safe, peaceful rally,” Madden said. “[ The] event was an opportunity for the public to make their voices heard and advocate for positive, lasting change in our community.
“There is still much work ahead to address systemic racism & discrimination, and we are committed to meaningful dialogue and action.”
“Additionally, I applaud the rapid response of Troy police and our law enforcement partners to an incident involving
several suspicious individuals carrying handguns,” Madden added. “These individuals have been detained and are being questioned by Troy police.
“Thank you to Chief [Brian[ Owens, our police officers, and assisting agencies in response to this incident, and their professionalism demonstrated throughout Sunday’s rally.”
During his coronavirus live stream update on Monday, McLaughlin was asked by a viewer whether he thinks having 11,000 people gather near each other will create more COVID-19 cases.
“I don’t think [COVID-19 cases will rise] from the protests since it did not from Memorial Day, but we don’t know for sure yet,” McLaughlin said
Meanwhile, three new cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed to the Rensselaer County Health Department, it was announced Monday. The three new cases bring the total number of confirmed cases in the county to 541.
The county also announced two new cases as cleared for recovery. The county now has 462 cleared cases with 50 active cases.
“The county now has 50 active cases, and every day, we look forward to more cases being cleared. We feel we are making progress in the battle against COVID-19,” McLaughlin said. The new cases include: • A new case involving a 27-year- old Troy man.
• A new case involving a 33-year- old Sand Lake woman.
• A new case involving a 19-year- old Hoosick woman.
On Sunday, the county saw no new cases, the second time in recent weeks there have been no new cases. The previous day there were no new cases was May 26.
“Our numbers continue to stabilize and the number of new cases has slowed significantly in recent days,” McLaughlin said.
There are now two residents in the hospital and none in the ICU. There is one at Albany Medical
Center, and one at Samaritan hospitals. There are currently 102 residents in quarantine.
There have been 12,944 tests administered to residents, including 586 tests recorded yesterday.
Overview of COVID-19 Cases: An overview of COVID-19 cases as confirmed to the Rensselaer County Health Department is now provided.
A breakdown by municipality:
Troy - 178
East Greenbush - 57
Nassau - 8
Brunswick - 24
Hoosick - 10
Sand Lake - 16
Schodack - 37
Stephentown - 8
North Greenbush - 48
Schaghticoke - 77*
Pittstown - 13
Petersburgh - 3
Grafton - 5
Poestenkill - 3
Rensselaer - 46
Berlin - 3
(*Includes 59 at the Diamond Hill adult care facility in Schaghticoke) A breakdown by age:
19 and under - 37
20 to 29 - 107
30 to 39 - 92
40 to 49 - 55
50 to 59 - 79
60 to 69 - 67
70 to 79 - 54
80 to 89 - 23
90 to 99 - 22
100 - 1