Con Edison deliberately cut power to 9,800 customers in Howard Beach, Ozone Park, Richmond Hill, and South Ozone Park as the heat index hit 115 degrees Saturday, while at least 19 people died from suspected heat in New Jersey over the July 4 holiday, state officials said [26].
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Eight people, including four children, were shot watching Fourth of July fireworks in Coney Island at 10:35 p.m. Saturday, the Post reports; a 6-year-old boy was shot in the stomach and a 21-year-old woman is in critical condition [27].
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A Legionnaires' disease cluster grew to 10 confirmed cases in Carnegie Hill and Yorkville on the Upper East Side by Friday night; city health officials are testing every cooling tower in the area [47].
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The Post reports Sunmount Developmental Center in Tupper Lake, a state facility housing adults with developmental disabilities, has had no working air conditioning for nearly three years, drawing a public letter from the Public Employees Federation during this week's heat wave [37].
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Vice President Vance celebrated America's 250th birthday from the USS Kearsarge in New York Harbor as roughly 45 tall ships from more than 20 nations sailed past the Statue of Liberty and a B-52 Stratofortress and B-2 bomber roared overhead; Mayor Mamdani and Governor Hochul joined shore ceremonies [18][39].
Con Edison deliberately cut power to 9,800 customers in Howard Beach, Ozone Park, Richmond Hill, and South Ozone Park and reduced voltage 8% for nearly 400,000 more as the heat index hit 115 degrees Saturday. At least 19 people died from suspected heat in New Jersey, state officials said, and Central Park reached 100 degrees Thursday, tying the hottest reading since 1966 [26]. The deliberate cuts came the first weekend after the Champlain Hudson Power Express, a 339-mile, $8 billion line designed to carry Hydro-Quebec hydropower to a converter station in Astoria and supply roughly a million homes, went offline on its first official day under state contract.
“We started to see what we believed to be heat-related deaths as early as Thursday of this week... many of these individuals were found in homes without air conditioning”
Dr. Raynard Washington, New Jersey Department of Health Commissioner, press briefing Saturday · [26]
By the numbers
19suspected heat deaths in New Jersey over the July 4 holiday [26]
9,800customers deliberately cut in Howard Beach, Ozone Park, Richmond Hill, and South Ozone Park
nearly 400,000additional customers had voltage reduced 8% across Brooklyn and Queens
100 degreesCentral Park on Thursday, tying the hottest day since 1966 [26]
The thread
2010The Champlain Hudson Power Express was first proposed to carry Hydro-Quebec hydropower 339 miles to a converter station in Astoria, Queens, enough to cover up to 20% of the city's power needs
TodayCon Ed moved to deliberate cutoffs in Queens; the $8B line meant to protect the grid during exactly this kind of emergency went offline on its first day under state contract
WatchWhether Albany opens a formal inquiry into why the Champlain Hudson line failed on its first day under contract, and when it returns to service.
FromBreaking NYC News & Local Headlines | New York Post
Eight people, including four children, were shot at 2930 West 30th Street near Surf Avenue in Coney Island at 10:35 p.m. Saturday as Fourth of July fireworks lit the sky a quarter-mile away, the Post reports [27]. A 6-year-old boy was shot in the stomach; a 21-year-old woman shot in the chest is in critical condition; the six other victims, ranging from age 7 to 37, were shot in the legs or shoulder and are all in stable condition [27]. Police found a book bag with a gun under nearby trees and are investigating the number of gunmen [27].
“When I see in the camera I see the cops running with the kids in their hands”
deli worker, corner of West 30th Street and Surf Avenue · [27]
“It's so sad they won't enjoy themselves without them killing each other. This building is always partying. I came home to have fun and now this. This building always has some trouble”
A Legionnaires' disease cluster grew from two confirmed cases Thursday to 10 by Friday night, all concentrated in the Carnegie Hill and Yorkville neighborhoods of the Upper East Side, city health officials said [47]. Every cooling tower in zip codes 10028 and 10128 is now being tested. Officials say residents can safely drink tap water, shower, and run air conditioners; the bacteria spreads through mist from towers, not between people [47]. Anyone who visited the area since late June should watch for fever, chills, cough, and muscle aches [47].
“Legionnaires' disease is deadly but can be effectively treated if diagnosed early”
Dr. Alister Martin, NYC Health Commissioner · [47]
By the numbers
10confirmed cases as of Friday night, all in Carnegie Hill and Yorkville [47]
7dead, 90 hospitalized, and more than 100 infected in last year's Harlem Hospital outbreak [47]
The thread
Summer 2025Cooling towers at Harlem Hospital and a nearby construction site caused an outbreak killing 7 people and hospitalizing 90; a Gothamist investigation found the hospital had ignored its own cooling tower maintenance plan and failed to conduct weekly rapid tests for the bacteria [47]
TodayThe cluster emerged in Carnegie Hill and Yorkville; all towers in the affected ZIP codes are under testing [47]
WatchHealth department cooling tower test results; whether the case count grows further this weekend.
FromGothamist
Around the Boroughs
Brooklyn (Coney Island): Joey Chestnut ate 66 hot dogs in 10 minutes to win his 18th Nathan's Famous Fourth of July title at the Surf and Stillwell flagship; Miki Sudo took the women's crown with 38.75, her 12th [49].
Manhattan (Harbor): About 45 tall ships from more than 20 nations sailed past the Statue of Liberty and up the Hudson River Saturday as a B-52 Stratofortress and B-2 Spirit bomber flew overhead marking America's 250th birthday at the Sail4th 250 celebration [18][39].
Bronx: A falling tree branch shattered the cab window of a northbound 4 train near Yankee Stadium at 8:26 p.m. Saturday, injuring the operator and suspending service briefly; all 200 passengers were evacuated to 149th Street [28].
Queens (South Ozone Park): The Post reports NYPD is hunting for a woman who allegedly stabbed her 59-year-old mother, Ausha Ramlakhan, to death on 128th Street near Liberty Avenue on July 4; the suspect fled in blue yoga pants, a red tank top, and white sneakers [34].
Upstate (Tupper Lake): The Post reports Sunmount Developmental Center, a state facility for adults with developmental disabilities, has had no working air conditioning for nearly three years; Public Employees Federation President Wayne Spence toured it Wednesday and wrote state officials about the "oppressive heat" inside [37].
The Bronx (Belmont): An affordable housing lottery opened for 2351 Lorillard Place, a new nine-story building in Belmont; 18 units at 40 to 100 percent of AMI, with three-bedrooms as low as $1,368 a month; applications due July 24 [55].
Brooklyn (Sunset Park): A federal complaint against an inmate at the Metropolitan Detention Center describes other prisoners, including Alexander brother Oren, using a contraband cellphone; all three brothers, convicted of sex trafficking in March, await sentencing there in October [52].
City Hall: Mayor Mamdani has used the phrase "for too long" at least 80 times since taking office, Gothamist counted, including four times in his inaugural address and in speeches on public restrooms, slow buses, taxi drivers, and workplace heat protections [46].
Citywide: A Honan Strategy Group poll the Post reported Saturday found 68% of New York City residents are proud to be American, but 43% say the country is in "serious decline" and 62% are pessimistic about the next decade [42].
Environment: State surveyors have found concerningly low levels of young striped bass in the Hudson River for three consecutive years, the DEC says; New Yorkers took 13 million fishing trips last year and the fish are popular with anglers from every borough [48].
Sports: The Liberty beat the Minnesota Lynx 99-86 for their best performance of the season; Breanna Stewart scored a season-high 36 points, 16 of them in the first quarter [83].
Sports: Four Yankees are headed to the All-Star Game in Philadelphia: Aaron Judge (voted in by fans despite injury), Cam Schlittler, Ben Rice, and Cody Bellinger [85].
Sports: The Mets fell to 17 games below .500 Saturday after a 14-3 loss to the Braves in Atlanta, dropping 12 of their last 14; the Braves hit five home runs [66].
Only in New York
Somebody at Macy's decided the best way to celebrate America's 250th birthday was to mount fireworks-launch platforms directly on the Brooklyn Bridge and fire the pyrotechnics from the span. The plan mostly worked. Video during Saturday night's show caught plumes of smoke rising from what appeared to be a burning section of the bridge as bursts lit the sky around it. Nearing Khoula, 24, watching from the Brooklyn waterfront, told the Post: "At first I thought it was supposed to happen but then I was scared it would exploded. I thought the bridge was made of wood so I was scared." The bridge is granite and steel wire. FDNY dispatched two engines, extinguished minor fires on the wooden launch platforms, and a source confirmed the 143-year-old structure is "safe and structurally sound." Two hundred and fifty years in, and New York still finds ways to nearly set its own bridge on fire [29].
Gothamist