The Borneo Post (Sabah)

New York City aims to ‘fully reopen’ on July 1

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NEW YORK: New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said Thursday that the city hopes to ‘fully reopen’ on July 1.

The mayor did not specify exactly how or when pandemic restrictio­ns would be lifted, which is actually a decision for New York state Governor Andrew Cuomo, with whom he has a difficult relationsh­ip.

“We are ready for stores to open, for businesses to open, offices, theaters, full strength,” de Blasio told MSNBC.

For his part, Cuomo said making projection­s was ‘irresponsi­ble’ but hoped that the Big Apple might be able to end restrictio­ns earlier.

“If we do what we have to do we can reopen earlier,” he told reporters. De Blasio said there was still ‘work to be done’ and said the key to reopening would be getting everybody vaccinated.

New York has been subject to various restrictio­ns since the coronaviru­s first engulfed the city in March last year, going on to kill around 32,000 people.

Some 6.4 million doses of the vaccine have been administer­ed in the Big Apple, according to city figures. Around 2.4 million New Yorkers out of 8.5 million have been fully vaccinated. The goal is to reach 5 million by the end of June, said the mayor.

Cuomo has loosened a number of restrictio­ns in recent weeks, allowing restaurant­s, stadiums, cinemas and performanc­e venues to reopen with limited capacity. — AFP

 ?? — AFP file photo ?? Lower Manhattan with the Freedom Tower (centre) during sunrise as seen from the Empire State Building’s 86th Floor Observator­y in New York City.
— AFP file photo Lower Manhattan with the Freedom Tower (centre) during sunrise as seen from the Empire State Building’s 86th Floor Observator­y in New York City.

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