
NEW YORK (1010 WINS) – The NYPD spoke with 1010 WINS about safety measures for the 2024 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade following reports that the event could be an attractive target for both foreign and domestic terrorist threats.
“We have assets that you’ll see out there and assets that you won’t see,” said NYPD Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey. “Undercover officers, we’ll be using our drones and other technologies to make sure that people are safe.”
On Thursday, an interagency meeting was hosted with Macy’s to finalize safety protocols for the event. Maddrey assured the public that security teams would be highly visible and well-prepared. “We will be highly visible and ready to go,” he said.
One of the biggest threats comes from “lone offenders and small groups of individuals seeking to commit acts of violence,” according to a report from multiple law enforcement agencies, including the FBI and NYPD, obtained by ABC7. The report highlights vehicle ramming as a particular concern, noting it has “become a recurring tactic employed by threat actors” targeting crowded pedestrian areas.
To mitigate such risks, the NYPD announced it will deploy sanitation trucks and other blocker vehicles along the parade route to prevent unauthorized access.
There was no "specific, actionable threat,” according to the document.
The parade will start off at 8:30 a.m. on Thanksgiving morning from the Upper West Side, and will end at Herald Square. It is expected to draw around 2 million spectators and feature 10,000 participants.
“Though the 2024 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade event will provide a broad set of potential soft targets for an attack, congested areas where the largest amount of people gather—particularly designated viewing areas—are likely the most vulnerable spots for a mass casualty attack,” the assessment said.
Last year, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade saw disruptions from a group of pro-Palestinian protesters who ran into the street, glued themselves to the pavement, and staged a “die-in,” with some lying on the ground pretending to be dead while others poured red paint.
