TOGETHER DURING CRISIS
workers, donations pour in to feed the needy
Several Industry City manufacturers have begun making muchneeded
supplies amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Photo by Todd Maisel
Industry City businesses
producing protective gear
for health care workers
COURIER LIFE, MAY 1-7, 2020 3
BY TODD MAISEL
Swimwear designer Malia
Mills manufactures
bathing suits in Sunset
Park’s Industry City. But
when the COVID-19 outbreak
took hold, Mills was
faced with shutting down
operations.
Instead, the designer pivoted
to producing hospital
gowns — and now, Malia
Mills and a handful of other
neighboring companies are
churning out 5,000 gowns a
day that are turned over to
the Economic Development
Corporation for distribution
to medical institutions that
request them. In total, the
clothing companies make
about 65,000 protective coverings
per week.
Mayor Bill de Blasio visited
the Industry City factories
on April 22 and marveled
at the businesses’
“wartime footing” and their
ability to quickly churn out
desperately-needed products.
“You spend time with
healthcare workers and right
now, it’s been two months in
hell for them, so diffi cult, so
painful and challenging,” de
Blasio said. “We didn’t know
how bad this would get, and
then we were fearful that we
might not have enough personnel,
PPE, ventilators —
and you never stopped what
you were doing because now
it’s about protecting the heroes
and allow them to do
their life-saving work.”
Over the last several
weeks, the mayor has visited
several other companies
citywide that are producing
personal protective
equipment, such as gowns,
face masks, and hand sanitizer.
Factories at the Navy
Yard have mobilized to manufacture
plastic face shields,
medical gowns, and other
PPE, while many breweries
have begun producing hand
sanitizer.
De Blasio said he is seeking
to have all protective
gear made locally, since
the national stockpile has
proven inadequate, and
the city has been forced to
bid against other cities and
states to obtain supplies
from out-of-town manufacturers.
“None of us would’ve
imagined that trying to fi nd
hospital gowns would be
nearly impossible for our
front-line workers,” he said.
“This is an amazing industry
— the heart and soul of
New York City.”
Military fl yover honors
healthcare heroes
BY BROOKLYN PAPER
The Navy Blue Angels
and the Air Force Thunderbirds
fl ew over parts of New
York and New Jersey on
Tuesday in a show of support
to honor healthcare
heroes and essential workers
on the front lines of the
coronavirus pandemic.
The fl yover, part of a nationwide
tour to lift Americans’
spirits during the turmoil,
began at noon in the
Bronx and ended at about
12:40 pm near Brooklyn’s
Verrazzano Bridge.
It included six F-16 Fighting
Falcons that make up
the Thunderbirds and six
F-18 Hornets that make up
the Blue Angels.