New York Governor Andrew Cuomo responded angrily to footage of a Chainsmokers rock concert in Southampton over the weekend, announcing an immediate investigation over an event that he described as “illegal and reckless.”
In a video shared on his Twitter account, thousands of fans can be seen gathered at the concert showing little regard for social distancing measures recommended as a preventative measure against the ongoing Chinese coronavirus pandemic.
“Videos from a concert held in Southampton on Saturday show egregious social distancing violations. I am appalled,” Cuomo wrote. “The Department of Health will conduct an investigation. We have no tolerance for the illegal & reckless endangerment of public health.”
Watch below:
According to Billboard, the concert was in fact a charity event, with organizers insisting they followed the proper guidelines and protocols required because of the pandemic.
“The video that everyone is talking about was taken from an angle that doesn’t properly convey how careful we were to follow the guidelines created by the CDC,” the organizers said in a statement. “We did everything in our power to enforce New York’s social distancing guidelines and collaborated with all state and local health officials to keep everyone safe.”
Cuomo’s determination to crack down on such distancing violations comes as New York is one of the worst-hit cities in the world. As well as the many who have accused Cuomo of being too slow to respond, Cuthe New York governor has been widely criticized for his decision to issue a directive back in March, forcing nursing homes and longterm care facilities to accept coronavirus patients from hospitals, likely sending thousands of elderly to premature deaths.
Unlike New York City mayor Bill de Blasio and the majority of Democratic Party leaders, the 62-year-old Cuomo did come out against the recent wave of Black Lives Matter protests triggered in response to the death of George Floyd, warning about the risk of a second wave.
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