NEW YORK—As millions of Americans prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving, security will be tight in New York City with a record number of police officers patrolling the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
City officials have said there are no known, credible threats against New York following the recent attacks in Paris and a video purportedly produced by ISIS that contained video clips of Times Square.
But Police Commissioner William Bratton said more than 2,500 officers will be stationed along the parade route for the Thanksgiving Day festivities — the largest number of officers the department has ever assigned to the event.
Officials estimate about 3 million spectators will line the streets of Manhattan to see the marching bands, musical acts and famed Rockettes.
“I think people are coming here from all over the city, all over the metropolitan region, all over the country to be a part of this parade,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said during a news conference Wednesday night. “We cannot let the terrorists succeed at psychological warfare. ... They’re doing what they do to try and create fear, to try and change us.”
Thousands of people gathered in Manhattan on Wednesday night to watch as the large, character balloons that have become a staple in the parade were inflated.
