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KEY POINTS
- New York City's confirmed COVID-19 cases has skyrocketed 5,700% in a single week
- The city's confirmed case count stood at only 62 on March 12
- It stood at 3,615 on Thursday
Densely populated New York City -- the world's financial capital -- is struggling to get a handle on the COVID-19 rampaging through its 8.2 million residents packed into an area of only 1.2 million square kilometers.
If NYC were a country, it would be the 10th most COVID-19 infected country in the world with 3,615 confirmed cases. It would be sandwiched in between number nine Switzerland (4,164 cases) and number 11 United Kingdom (2,716 cases).
Mayor Bill de Blasio has his hands full, and is apparently at wit's end, coping with the ever worsening crisis. Last week, de Blasio said he doesn't want New York City to implement an Italy-style shutdown out of fear doing so will severely damage the city's economy in 2021.
"I don't think we want to end up like Italy unless we are absolutely sure there is no other choice," he said on March 12 when the city's tally of COVID-19 cases rose from 53 to 62 overnight.
But he might now have to "do an Italy" given the crisis is peaking way too fast. From 62 on March 12, the total number of confirmed cases in the city skyrocketed more than 5,700% to 3,615 exactly one week later.
On Thursday, de Blasio declared the city is only two to three weeks away from running out of medical supplies, a testament to the rapid spread that rendered meaningless the city's extensive preparation to meet this medical emergency.
To stave off this Armageddon, de Blasio wants to immediately acquire 3 million N95 respirators, 50 million surgical masks, 15,000 ventilators and 25 million each of personal protective equipment, surgical gowns, coveralls, gloves and face masks. These massive numbers are not forthcoming from the United States Strategic National Stockpile (SNS), which contains some $7 to $8 billion worth of emergency supplies stored in secret warehouses located throughout the United States.
SNS is the country's national repository of antibiotics, vaccines, chemical antidotes, antitoxins, and other critical medical supplies. SNS ensures the right medicines and supplies get to those that need them most during an emergency, such as the fast-expanding COVID-19 pandemic. Right now, SNS is stretched to its breaking point, naving to contend with simultaneous and massive requests from 50 states, not to mention cities and towns.
"I said very clearly that for the month of March, we have the supplies that we need, the city has very strong reserves of the kind of supplies that I talked about ... It is going into April that I'm worried about," said de Blasio.
"I don't have the perfect day for you, we're assessing all the time but it is a day, two weeks from now or three weeks from now where we must, by then, have had a very substantial resupply. So I think the simple way to think about it, is that the federal government has, essentially, two weeks to get us major resupply or the people of New York City are going to be in much greater danger."