The 9/11 Memorial Museum will open its doors exclusively to victims’ families on Sept. 11, ending a nearly six-month shutdown because of the coronavirus.
The museum will reopen to the public the following day and remain open five days a week while following the city’s COVID-19 guidelines.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced last week that city museums could open later this month since the state’s number of coronavirus cases have remained at an all time low.
Guests coming to see the exhibits will be required to wear masks at all times and the building’s capacity will be reduced to 25% to allow proper spacing of visitors, the museum noted on its website.
Tickets to the museum will need to be purchased in advance to prevent lines at the door and the hours will be reduced to provide more time for cleaning and sanitizing, officials said.
Word of the museum’s re-opening comes about a week after the 9/11 Memorial officials were criticized for their decision to cancel this year’s Tribute in Lights commemoration for the World Trade Center attacks.
After several first responder unions and 9/11 survivor advocacy groups voiced their outrage and promised to band together to hold the tribute on their own, leaders reversed course and announced the lighting ceremony would take place as scheduled with the backing of the state, former Mayor Michael Bloomberg and the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation.
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