Mayor Bill de Blasio Drops Staten Island Chuck; Groundhog Predicts Long Winter
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Mayor Bill de Blasio dropped Staten Island's celebrity groundhog Sunday. Then Staten Island Chuck dropped some bad news on New Yorkers.
During a ceremony at dawn at the Staten Island Zoo, Chuck predicted that New York's brutal winter thus far will hang around a while longer.
Chuck made his prognostication of six more weeks of winter at a ceremony officiated by de Blasio, who had hoped to get off on the right foot with his furry co-star.
Bill de Blasio Drops Staten Island Chuck; Groundhog Predicts Long Winter
Before Chuck's big moment, de Blasio made reference to the 2009 incident when the groundhog bit then-Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
"I'm hoping we can start a new day, a relationship here," de Blasio said. "I'm reaching out a hand to Chuck, and I hope he will consider shaking it rather than doing other things."
But as soon as Chuck was placed in de Blasio's glove-covered hands, the groundhog wriggled his way out and leaped to the ground. He was quickly scooped up by a handler.
Finally, after Chuck saw his shadow, de Blasio said: "Chuck has spoken, everyone. It's a cold, hard reality, but live by the groundhog, die by the groundhog."
According to zoo officials, Chuck's accuracy rate is 82 percent, WCBS 880's Monica Miller reported.
Chuck wasn't alone in his prediction. In Pennsylvania, Punxsutawney Phil also saw his shadow.
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