UN Donates Quarter Of A Million Face Masks To NYC Health Workers

UN donates quarter of a million face masks to NYC health workers

NEW YORK, (Pakistan Point News - 29th Mar, 2020) The United Nations has donated 250,000 face masks to New York City health workers on Saturday.

In a statement, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that the face masks stored in United Nations facilities, were a part of UN stocks, deemed surplus to requirements.

The UN chief praised medical professionals in New York City who, he said, have been working "courageously, selflessly, and tirelessly in response to the spread of COVID-19 across the boroughs," in a reference to the five boroughs into which the City is administratively divided (Manhattan, Queens, The Bronx, Brooklyn and Staten Island).

Guterres went on to express his hope that the protective equipment will "play some small role in saving lives".

Shortly after the statement was released, the governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, said in a press conference that the spread of the virus is leaving people disorientated. "The State is on lockdown and the peak of the virus is still forecast to be up to three weeks away," he said.

New York is currently the US epicentre of the coronavirus pandemic, with more than 55,000 confirmed cases in the state.