Workers work on the balloons to prepare for Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York, the United States, Nov. 21, 2018. (Xinhua/Wang Ying)
NEW YORK, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- More than 3.5 million people are expected to line the streets of Manhattan, New York City, to watch the dazzling display of balloons and floats at the 92nd annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on Thursday.
However, icy strong winds on the Turkey Day may threaten to ground these iconic balloons and floats as the National Weather Service is calling for a blustery day, "with a northwest wind around 23 miles per hour (37 kilometers per hour), with gusts as high as 34 miles per hour (54 kilometers per hour)."
The New York Police Department (NYPD) will deploy devices along the parade route to monitor wind speeds, and could order handlers to lower or remove balloons accordingly in wind speeds of at least 23 miles per hour and gusts of at least 34 miles per hour, NYPD Chief of Patrol Rodney Harrison said at a news conference in Manhattan on Tuesday.
It has been the city's policy to ground balloons in such wind speeds after a 1997 Thanksgiving parade accident, in which a six-story-tall Cat in the Hat balloon careened into a lamppost made of cast-steel, slicing off part of it and injuring four.
The parade, which started in 1924, will begin at 9 a.m. Thursday at 77th Street and Central Park West and conclude at department store Macy's on 34th Street and 7th Avenue.
This year's parade will include many of the balloons and floats from past years, like the 53-foot-high (16 meters) Pikachu from the Pokemon franchise, a 67-foot-high (20 meters) Ronald McDonald as well as several new additions, including Little Cloud by FriendsWithYou and Sunny the Snowpal, according to Macy's parade website.
On a quiet calm day, some of the show-stopping characters require about 90 handlers to control as they float about 50 feet (15 meters) in the air.