NEW YORK (AP) — It started with a funeral that got out of hand. It ended Wednesday with some of New York City’s Jews at odds with the mayor over his criticisms of the Orthodox community as it struggles to deal with the coronavirus. The funeral was for Rabbi Chaim Mertz, a revered Hasidic Orthodox […]

NEW YORK (AP) — Police were called to a Brooklyn neighborhood Wednesday after a funeral home overwhelmed by the coronavirus resorted to storing dozens of bodies on ice in rented trucks, and a passerby complained about the smell, officials said. Investigators who responded to a 911 call found that the home had rented four trucks […]

BROOKLYN, NY (JTA) – The images were striking, the mayor had strong words and the backlash was swift. On Tuesday night, hundreds of Orthodox Jews gathered for a rabbi’s funeral in Brooklyn, showing apparent disregard of public social distancing guidelines. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio issued a tweet in which he addressed “the […]

NEW YORK (AP) – New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio defended his tweets criticizing a large Jewish funeral on Wednesday at a press briefing. De Blasio said Wednesday that he was sorry if his words hurt anyone’s feelings but he didn’t regret calling out what he characterized as a dangerous violation of social distancing […]

NEW YORK (AP) — New York City schools will implement a new grading system for the remainder of the coronavirus-disrupted school year, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Tuesday. Elementary school students will be graded “meeting the standards” or “needing improvement” while high school students will have a pass-fail grading option, de Blasio said. Acknowledging that […]

MOHEGAN LAKE, N.Y. (AP) — A New York woman who was born during the Spanish Flu pandemic has survived COVID-19. Angelina Friedman, who lives in a nursing home in Lake Mohegan, was taken to a hospital for a minor medical procedure on March 21. But her procedure was postponed after she tested positive for COVID-19. […]

NEW YORK (AP) – Jets from Navy’s Blue Angels and the Air Force’s Thunderbirds flew over New York City on Tuesday in a tribute to the medical personnel, first responders and other essential workers involved in fighting the pandemic. The planes from the two demonstration squadrons flew in formation over New York and Newark beginning […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court sidestepped a major decision on gun rights Monday in a dispute over New York City’s former ban on transporting guns. The justices threw out a challenge from gun rights groups. It ruled that the city’s move to ease restrictions on taking licensed, locked and unloaded guns outside the city […]

NEW YORK (AP) – New York City-run health clinics will soon take a new tack on coronavirus testing, using a procedure that lets people collect samples themselves at a health care worker’s direction, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Monday. He said the “self-swab” tests would allow for more and easier testing and make it safer […]

NEW YORK (AP) — Ruth Caballero paused outside an unfamiliar apartment door, preparing to meet her new patient. She covered the knob with a plastic bag. Put on a surgical gown, then a heavy-duty N95 mask, a lighter surgical mask on top. Cap, face shield, shoe covers. Hand sanitizer between each step of the process. […]