While government officials across the country were preparing citizens for the coronavirus and ensuing local shutdowns, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio encouraged the city’s younger residents to continue life as normal.

“If you’re under 50 and you’re healthy, which is most New Yorkers, there’s very little threat here,” de Blasio told MSNBC on March 10, just one day before President Trump suspended travel to and from Europe due to the continued spread of COVID-19.