De Blasio expects the worst during the next few weeks: ‘I could see it going into May’

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio on Tuesday said that he thinks that the worst effects of the coronavirus pandemic may last into May.

“The data is what we’re looking at all the time, making our decisions based on, but obviously, it means human lives, over 900 lives already lost in New York City. And what we’re seeing is a sharp upturn over the last days, certainly the last few weeks,” de Blasio said on NBC’s “Today” show.

“We have to look at this pattern and conclude that the worst is certainly in the next few weeks, minimum,” the mayor said.

“I could see it going into May, in fact, with the numbers we’re looking at because we have community spread, and that’s really the issue,” he added.

“It’s deeply seeded in our communities and we’re going to see this all over the country, unfortunately.”

“We have to look at this pattern and conclude that the worst is certainly in the next few weeks, minimum. I could see it going into May, in fact, with the numbers we’re looking at because we have community spread, and that’s really the issue.” –@NYCMayor pic.twitter.com/dQFF99UOiD

— TODAY (@TODAYshow) March 31, 2020

De Blasio, who has been critical of President Trump’s response to the pandemic, has implemented a variety of restrictions in order to stem the virus’s spread.

On Monday, he said that New York Police Department officers would pull people out of crowded subway trains as the city continues to grapple with the pandemic.

“The PD is going to go out there, if they see any overcrowding, they’re going to literally split it up, pull people off the train, move them along into different cars, whatever it takes,” de Blasio told NY1. “This is literally about protecting people’s lives.”

New York City has recorded 914 deaths as of Tuesday morning, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University, while the state has more than 67,000 confirmed coronavirus cases.