Cities across the United States are ramping up security measures to ensure a safe and enjoyable New Year’s Eve for millions of revelers amid heightened fears of a terror attack.
New York City police are promising a bigger security detail than ever before for this year’s New Year’s Eve festivities centered on Times Square.
Up to two million people are expected to flood the commercial center of the nation’s largest city tomorrow night.
As well, the city’s ‘ring of steel’ – surveillance cameras in high-traffic areas, inspired by the apparatus surrounding the City of London – will be used to assess unusual activity.
The stepped-up security is in response to an attempted bombing in a Times Square subway station walkway on December 11.
ISIS fighters also recently shared a disturbing propaganda image threatening a Christmas-time attack on New York City. The image showed Santa Claus standing on a low roof next to a box of dynamite looking out over a crowd of shoppers in Times Square. The poster featured the words ‘We meet at Christmas in New York… soon’, written across it in black on white.
And it comes on top of increasingly stringent security for the city’s New Year’s Eve celebration in the years since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
New York Police Department bollards sit on a sidewalk in Times Square to provide security against ramming attacks ahead of New Year’s Eve celebrations this year. Up to two million people are expected to flood the commercial center of the nation’s largest city tomorrow night
Members of the New York Police Department’s Counter-terrorism Bureau monitor security in Times Square ahead of New Year celebrations. The stepped-up security is in part a response to an attempted bombing in a Times Square subway station walkway on December 11
DailyMail.com has looked at the counter-terrorism efforts in five cities across the United States that are meant to ensure a safe New Year’s Eve for all. Pictured are NYPD officers patrolling Times Square as part of an increased security presence in August
Meanwhile, Las Vegas officials are preparing for the highest security level possible for a special event, SEAR Level 1, the Los Angeles Times reports.
The heightened security in the Sin City comes after a sniper killed 58 people before fatally shooting himself during a music festival on the Las Vegas strip in October.
And San Francisco, following an attempted terror attack this past month, is putting more officers on the streets than in years past.
Below, DailyMail.com looks at the counter-terrorism efforts of five US cities – New York City, Las Vegas, San Francisco, Chicago and Los Angeles – to thwart any potential threats this New Year’s Eve.
New York City
Officers with specialized training to stop suicide bombers will be on patrol at Sunday’s New Year’s Eve celebration when up to two million people will flood the streets of Times Square in New York.
In addition to its usual army of snipers, bag-inspecting officers and metal detectors, the department this year is relying on help from a growing corps of ‘vapor wake’ dogs, which are trained to sniff out trace amounts of explosive particles that trail behind someone carrying a bomb.
More officers will be positioned throughout the area this year and all parking garages in the vicinity of Times Square will be emptied in advance of the celebration and sealed off, so no one has a chance to sneak in a car bomb, police said.
The Numeral ‘8’ is delivered to be placed atop 1 Times Square for the New Year’s Eve ball drop. The NYPD will be relying on a growing corps of ‘vapor wake’ dogs who are trained to sniff out trace amounts of explosive particles
Pedestrians walk past the One Times Square building ahead of New Year’s Eve celebrations. Revelers will need to contend with freezing outdoor temperatures this year
As well, reflective markers will be placed on the outside of certain buildings with the goal of helping officers quickly identify where a sniper might be, the New York Times reports.
‘You will see an increase in heavy weapons, bomb squad personnel, radiological detection teams, and our technology to include over 1,000 cameras in and around the area of Times Square for the event,’ the NYPD’s chief of counterterrorism, James Waters, said at a news conference.
Officers involved in the New Year’s Eve security operation will receive a tactical bulletin and a training video on suicide bombers that they will be able to review on their department-issued phones starting Friday.
The training material will include instructions on protecting bystanders if officers suspect someone has a bomb and guidance on apprehending and disarming suspects with the assistance of the bomb squad, he said.
Detectives posted in hotels will keep an eye on guests, and additional emergency services and critical response teams will be on hand, Police Commissioner James O’Neill said.
O’Neill declined to say how many of the department’s 36,000 officers will work on New Year’s Eve, in order to keep would-be attackers guessing. In years past there have generally been 5,000; officers said there would be more this year.
People who want to see the New Year’s Eve musical acts and other entertainment up close in Times Square will have to pass by dogs trained to detect explosives and heavily armed officers, go through a magnetometer to check for weapons, have their bags inspected, and then repeat all those steps a second time.
Police will again use dump trucks filled with sand, police cars and cement blocks to close streets starting at 11am on Sunday.
Even so, police acknowledged a possible suicide bomber could manage to get close to large crowds of people before the checkpoints are set up. Asked how to stop someone in this situation, Waters said: ‘As a last resort: deadly physical force.’
Las Vegas
Homeland Security officials and the Las Vegas police department are gearing up for New Year’s Eve, which has been deemed a National Special Security Event this year.
Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo told the Los Angeles Times that there would be more snipers, aircraft surveillance and more than 4,000 metal barricades along the Las Vegas Strip, which will be pedestrianized for the celebration ringing in the new year.
The Mandalay Bay hotel-casino is seen from a distance as Las Vegas Metro Police block off Las Vegas Boulevard the morning after a gunman fired on concertgoers in October. Las Vegas’s New Year’s Eve celebration has been deemed a National Special Security Event this year
Pictured is a general view of atmosphere during the New Year’s Eve celebration at the Chateau Nightclub & Gardens at the Paris Las Vegas during New Year’s Eve in 2011. This year will see more than 4,000 metal barricades along the pedestrianized Las Vegas Strip
The increased security comes even though the city expects fewer visitors this New Year’s Eve than in years past (334,000 people; down 1.2 percent from last year).
The Strip, along with the city’s McCarran International Airport, will be patrolled by 300 National Guard troops.
Meanwhile, Nevada Department of Transportation officials told the Los Angeles Times that around $350,000 would be spent on protective measures.
‘Nobody puts on a New Year’s Eve show like Las Vegas, and never will it be as safe as it will be this year,’ a Clark County official told the Los Angeles Times.
Revelers will also not be allowed to bring large baggage into the pedestrianized section of the Los Vegas Strip.
San Francisco
After the December 20 arrest of a man who allegedly was inspired by the Islamic State to commit an act of terrorism at a tourist hot spot, the Northern California city is beefing up its New Year’s Eve security measures.
The nation’s second-most densely populated city will see ‘additional deployment,’ police said at at a news conference attended by San Francisco Gate.
Police said that will be ‘a very visible presence along the wharf area at Pier 39’.
The annual fireworks show along the Embarcadero will also see a greater police presence, ACB7 reports.
The pier, in the heart of the city’s Fisherman’s Wharf area, is where FBI officials said Everitt Aaron Jameson had planned to carry out a foiled terrorist attack.
Police declined to cite specific counter-terrosim efforts in the interest of secrecy but also said there are ‘no credible threats’ to the city.
‘Our public needs to be able to do the things they want to do freely,’ Police Chief William Scott, with regard to terror threats. ‘We stop doing things that we as Americans or residents of this nation that we have a right to do, then we’re in the wrong place.’
Chicago
The nation’s Second City has deployed concrete barriers along the Magnificent Mile, the city’s major thoroughfare, and at Navy Pier.
More than 3,000 people are expected to attend festivities at Navy Pier.
Illuminated buildings are seen during the annual ‘Chi-Town Rising New Years Eve countdown celebration’ last New Year’s Eve. Chicago has deployed concrete barriers along the Magnificent Mile to thwart any potential vehicular acts of terrorism
Fireworks Illuminate the sky with light shows during the annual ‘Chi-Town Rising New Years Eve countdown celebration
As well, increased police patrols along the Magnificent Mile will work to thwart any potential attacks.
A report from CBS Chicago notes that the increase in concrete barriers serves as an effort to stymie any vehicular attacks such as those seen in Nice, Berlin and New York in the past year.
Los Angeles
Los Angelenos will see beefed up security for the Rose Parade in Pasadena.
People will be allowed to camp out along the suburb’s Colorado Boulevard, where the parade takes place, but will not be allowed to drive down the street.
This new rule specifically meant to curtail the potential for a vehicular attack, CBS Local reports.