COVID-19 Infections Continue To Increase In Some NYC Hot Spots
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- After sounding the alarm, COVID-19 infections continue to increase in some New York City neighborhoods.
The governor says all of this could have been avoided and if the city doesn't want to enforce the laws, he will get the state to do it.
It comes as some residents are calling out their neighbors online.
RELATED STORY: New York City's Daily Coronavirus Infection Rate Spikes Above 3% For 1st Time In Months
Cell phone video captured people packed onto 58th Street in Borough Park on Tuesday night.
An attendee says hundreds were escorting the Torah to the synagogue as part of a religious observance.
The attendee says masks were distributed, but it's hard to know how many were worn.
COVID cases in Borough Park are rising and the city has promised more enforcement, but there was no intervention Tuesday night.
"The local government's failure to enforce the law has exacerbated this problem," Gov. Andrew Cuomo said.
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For nearly a week, health officials have raised concerns about communities in one dozen zip codes in southern Brooklyn and Queens.
Many are home to large Orthodox Jewish communities who Councilman Chaim Deutsch says have been unfairly targeted.
"No one should be singled out, and this should not be targeted enforcement and aggressive enforcement or singling out a specific community when it comes to education," Deutsch said.
Wednesday, Deutsch passed out masks at his Sheepshead Bay district office.
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Health officials say while compliance is improving through education, in most of the hot spots, the rate of infection continues to rise.
"Almost 1,000 city employees will be out in these target zip codes doing distribution of masks, information and, when necessary, compliance work," Mayor Bill de Blasio said.
Valentina Lopez with Commonpoint Queens has been getting the word out, especially encouraging people to get tested as more sites are now open.
"Many people, they'll come to me and they'll say, how much does it cost? How much is a mask? How much to get tested? I say, no, it's completely free," Lopez told CBS2's Aundrea Cline-Thomas.
CORONAVIRUS: NY Health Dept. | NY Call 1-(888)-364-3065 | NYC Health Dept. | NYC Call 311, Text COVID to 692692 | NJ COVID-19 Info Hub | NJ Call 1-(800)-222-1222 or 211, Text NJCOVID to 898211 | CT Health Dept. | CT Call 211 | Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Most New York City residents have not had the coronavirus, meaning that herd immunity is a long ways away.
It's part of the misinformation health educators are trying to address as this virus continues to pose a dangerous threat.
Health officials say this disease has not changed; it's still deadly.
Everyone, whether you have symptoms or not, is encouraged to get tested.
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