The world-famous Times Square ball drop to ring in the new year shaped up to look different on Friday than in pre-pandemic years.
New York City officials last week announced that the event to see a six-ton ball with 2,700 Waterford crystals drop down to usher in 2022 at midnight would happen. However, they said it would be limited to 15,000 spectators in person, versus the typical 58,000.
Sections of Times Square were barricaded as with previous years, but attendees were not allowed to enter into viewing areas until 3pm on Friday, which was much later than previous years.
The biggest difference was that event staff checked vaccination cards for attendees to ensure that they had received both shots of the two-dose coronavirus vaccines or the single-dose Johnson & Johnson jab at least 14 days prior.
‘We are very excited to welcome back visitors to Times Square this New Year’s Eve,’ said Times Square Alliance President Tom Harris. ‘Our goal is to have a safe and responsible event for the world to see.’
The ball drop got the greenlight last week after not occurring last year due to the pandemic. It is being allowed to happen as New York City reported a record number of new Covid-19 cases on Wednesday, at almost 44,000, according to state figures. The daily case number was similar on Thursday.
This year’s celebrations start at 6pm. Several artists will perform including KT Tunstall, Karol G and Journey. Rapper LL Cool J canceled his performance on Wednesday after testing positive for the coronavirus.
The ball drop will be hosted by several TV networks including ABC, CNN and NBC. It can also be livestreamed through the Times Square Alliance and on streaming services like Hulu Live TV, Peacock and YouTube TV. The ball drop can also be viewed on the metaverse this year.
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