Eerie scene in NY as virus looms and city empties

New York authorities rushed to bring in an army of medical volunteers Wednesday as the statewide death toll from the coronavirus doubled in 72 hours to more than 1,900.

The wail of ambulances in the otherwise eerily quiet streets of the city have become the heartbreaking soundtrack of the crisis.

With New York on near-lockdown, the normally bustling streets in the city of 8.6 million are empty, and a siren to some is no longer just urban background noise.

The city's playgrounds are closing, too, at Gov. Andrew Cuomo's order.

"This is radically different from 9/11 because after 9/11, we all got together and held each other's hands and hugged and cried and had dinners and drank. And the isolation is incredibly difficult. It really is," said Beth Shapiro, a resident of Manhattan.

Near severely swamped Elmhurst Hospital in Queens, resident Emma Sorza, 33, described an eerie scene.

"I think everyone's just doing what they can, but at the same time it bothers you. Especially if you're around Elmhurst, because you can hear all the ambulances, she said.

"It's like a battlefield behind your home."

Cuomo said projections suggest the crisis in New York will peak at the end of April, with a high death rate continuing through July.

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and death.

More than 43,000 people have died from the virus, while more than 185,000 have recovered.