The Empire State Building was brightly lit to honor first responders during the coronavirus pandemic.
On Monday night, the New York City tower was lit with red and white lights to resemble sirens on ambulances and other emergency public health vehicles. The building’s social media account announced the lights on Twitter, telling health officials, “We’ll never stop shining for you.”
“Starting tonight through the COVID-19 battle, our signature white lights will be replaced by the heartbeat of America with a white and red siren in the mast for heroic emergency workers on the front line of the fight,” the post continued.
[1/2] We’ll never stop shining for you.
Starting tonight through the COVID-19 battle, our signature white lights will be replaced by the heartbeat of America with a white and red siren in the mast for heroic emergency workers on the front line of the fight. pic.twitter.com/OYkblLTRHN
— Empire State Building (@EmpireStateBldg) March 30, 2020
New York’s Empire State Building was lit up like an ambulance siren on Monday night in tribute to medical workers fighting coronavirus.
The Empire State Realty Trust said the lights symbolized “America’s heartbeat and a siren of red and white”. https://t.co/sK9NGk0fgE pic.twitter.com/SuZa16b8EG
— CNN (@CNN) March 31, 2020
The iconic building is often lit to commemorate certain events. After then-candidate Trump won the New York Republican primary in 2016, the tower was brightly lit red. And in 2019, the building shined in orange lights to raise awareness on the issue of gun violence.
According to the New York Department of Health, approximately 66,497 state residents have tested positive for COVID-19, representing approximately 40% of all cases present in the United States. More than 801,000 people have tested positive for the coronavirus globally. Of those, at least 38,700 have died from it, and more than 172,600 have recovered. The U.S. has seen at least 164,000 confirmed cases with nearly 6,000 reported recoveries.
