NEW YORK CITY — New Yorkers will see increased police patrols throughout the city after the terrorist attack in the French city of Nice that claimed the lives of 84 victims, though there is "no credible threat" against New York or the United States, NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton said Friday morning.
As multiple demonstrations, street fairs and Bastille Day celebrations are scheduled to take place over the weekend, "the public in New York City will see an enlarged presence" of police officers, Bratton said during a press conference in Sunset Park.
During Nice's own Bastille Day festivities Thursday, the driver of a truck reportedly mowed down crowds of people celebrating, leaving more than 200 people injured in the attack.
The NYPD was informed of the attack at about 5:15 p.m. Thursday evening and a number of overseas police detectives were moved to Nice, NYPD officials said.
"We have no specific threats that we have been able to determined against this city" or country, said Bratton, adding there were "no credible threats."
Bratton called the tragedy "horrific" expressing sympathy for the people of France facing another devastating attack.
NYPD Deputy Counterterrorism Commissioner John Miller said officials immediately contacted counterparts in France and Europol and attempted to determine the target and motivation behind the attack.
Patrols were also moved to crowded points of New York City, such as Times Square.
"Whenever there is an attack overseas, we look at the specifics of it and we start to counter-program against it," he said.
The use of vehicles as a weapon has been examined by the NYPD well before Thursday night's attack in Nice, Miller said.
In 2010, an Islamic extremist magazine published a section featuring a pick-up truck titled "the ultimate mowing machine," Miller said.
"The NYPD owns tons and tons of concrete blocks that we will assemble to block vehicles from charging," Miller said.
Those barricades have been used in high-security situations and for public safety, such as the Pope or presidential visits to New York, or when Super Bowl Boulevard set up in Times Square. The police also work with other city agencies on installing concrete bollards, delta barriers and creating blocker cars.
"This is not something that we started thinking about last night," Miller said. "It's been a known tactic."
Though there are no credible threats against the city, Bratton reiterated the importance of intelligence both on the ground in Nice and in the United States.
"We are continuing to significantly try and ramp up our first line of defense," he said.
The attack on France — the third in recent history — has left the world reeling, and officials in New York reacted with support and condolences for its people.
“The horrific rampage in Nice is a direct attack on the universal values our two countries have long championed and upheld," Gov. Andrew Cuomo said in a statement.
"New York stands united with France and all our allies in the face of terror. This is not only an attack on France, but an attack on democracy."
Security has been stepped up in high-profile locations around the state, including airports, bridges, tunnels and mass transit systems, Cuomo said.
"France has just gone through so much in the last two years," Mayor Bill de Blasio said Friday morning on The Brian Lehrer show.
De Blasio said offices and locations associated with the French government have been reinforced by the NYPD's Critical Response Command, the anti-terror force.
"We’re on alert every day in New York City," he said.
— With reporting by Jeff Mays.
