Cuomo says Staten Island accounts for a fourth of all NYC virus deaths

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) on Wednesday said that the borough of Staten Island makes up a quarter of all deaths in New York City even though the island’s population makes up just 5 percent of the city’s population. 

During a daily press briefing, Cuomo addressed “elected officials” and residents on Staten Island that have flouted coronavirus restrictions, stating that ignoring the rules has “devastating” consequences.

“Staten Island went from the lowest death rate in New York City, it now has the highest death rate. Staten Island has a 40 percent higher death rate than the Bronx, than Brooklyn, Queens or Manhattan. … Twenty-five percent of all the fatalities in New York City come from Staten Island. Staten Island is only five percent of the New York City population.” 

Gov. Cuomo (D-NY) addresses ‘Freedom Protests’ on Staten Island:

“25% of all the fatalities in New York City come from Staten Island. Staten Island is only 5% of the New York City population.” pic.twitter.com/NHfPighhUH

— The Recount (@therecount) December 9, 2020

“More people have died on Staten Island, more people are dying on Staten Island. That’s what this movement on Staten Island has done,” he said. 

The comments from the governor come one week after a raucous crowd of mostly unmasked protesters gathered outside of a Staten Island bar one day after plainclothes officers shut down Mac’s Public House for operating outside a 10 p.m. curfew. 

New York State placed restrictions on restaurants which prohibit indoor and outdoor dining past a 10:00 p.m. curfew in early November, according to NBC4 New York.

Before the protests, the owners of the bar had declared the space an “autonomous zone” and made it known that they would not adhere to COVID-19 restrictions. 

Staten Island has been a hot spot in the city for the past month, with most parts of the islands showing a steady 14-day upward trend in cases, according to data from The New York Times. New York City itself has, as of Wednesday morning, recorded more than 342,000 cases and more than 24,000 deaths since the start of the pandemic. 

Around the same time as the protests on Staten Island, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) announced that the city had reached a coronavirus infection rate of more than 5 percent, the highest positivity test the area had seen since May. 

The mayor said Tuesday that the positivity rates have solidified the imminence of harsher coronavirus restrictions, saying that he expect to reimplement them “in a matter of days” as cases continue to rise across the city, according to U.S. News and World Report.