Officials: Damage caused by Union Square chaos could cost up to $200,000
NEW YORK -- CBS New York got a new look at the cleanup underway Monday in Union Square following last week's chaos.
On Friday, thousands teenagers showed up for a giveaway, but ended up ripping down construction barriers, using fire extinguishers to spray the crowd, and climbing onto the roof of a subway entrance under construction.
READ MORE: NYPD officers "attacked, crushed, pushed" during chaotic Union Square giveaway, officials say
The Union Square Market was up and running on Monday. New Yorkers enjoyed snacks at yellow chairs and tables that had been used as projectiles.
Although there's no exact price tag, the damage from Friday's chaos to police cars, private vehicles and the transit entrance that is still in the process of being rebuilt could be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.
"They did quite a bit of damage," a construction worker named Jay said.
Officially, the MTA said it's still assessing the damage to the new entrance at Union Square station that is under construction, but one construction worker told CBS New York it could be as much as $200,000 because the roof to the entrance that people were jumping and dancing on had been recently installed and may have to be replaced.
As construction work resumed after as many as 6,000 people stormed the area last Friday, garbage bins of debris from the riot filled the area, including the fire extinguisher that one of the rioters used to spray at people during the hours-long disturbance.
Sources told CBS New York the NYPD is still going through video to identify other acts of violence and property damage and intends to make more arrests.
READ MORE: PR company that represents social media influencer Kai Cenat apologizes for Union Square chaos
Police released pictures of three teenagers who were part of a group of eight 14- to 18-year-olds who damaged a police car parked in front of 838 Broadway. They are also asking for the public's help in identifying the people seen kicking and jumping on private cars at East 14th Street and Union Square East.
Several police officers were injured in the chaos, from Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey, who was struck on the head with and object, to others who received cuts and bruises. One cop suffered a broken hand.
And while the area returned to normal Monday, a man who works in the area said he waited for hours before it was safe to leave his office.
"This whole area was completely wrecked all the way back down to the subway station down here. Just trash everywhere. Just madness up and down the block," Eddie King said.
Gov. Kathy Hochul praised the efforts of the NYPD.
"It was deeply disturbing to watch, but I also want to commend NYPD and the MTA for taking quick, coordinated action to close down the station temporarily, to suspend the bringing in more people. So I think what they did is they did as much as they could to control with the resources they had. So I want to thank them for what they did," Hochul said.
READ MORE: Who is Kai Cenat?
Twitch star Kai Cenat was charged with inciting a riot. However, police sources told CBS New York they believe he was trying to do something good by promising to give out PlayStations.
Police believe professional outside agitators were part of the crowd, using fireworks to contribute to the chaos.
