NEW YORK — The Latest on the New Year’s Eve celebration in New York’s Times Square (all times local):
12:20 a.m.
New Year’s reveler Colleen Keenan says the celebration in frigid Times Square is “a beautiful experience” and “there’s nothing like it.”
Kennan and her son braved temperatures of only 10 degrees (minus 12 degrees Celsius) to ring in 2018 in Times Square.
With a burst of confetti and fireworks, throngs of revelers celebrated the arrival of 2018 as the glittering crystal ball dropped.
Fireworks erupt as the clock strikes midnight during the New Year’s celebration in Times Square as seen from the Marriott Marquis in New York, Monday, Jan. 1, 2018. (Seth Wenig/Associated Press)
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Midnight
With a burst of confetti and fireworks, throngs of revelers have ushered in 2018 in a frigid Times Square as the glittering crystal ball dropped.
It was the second-coldest on record. The temperature was only 10 degrees (minus 12 degrees Celsius) in New York City at midnight. The coldest ball drop celebration was in 1917, when it was only 1 degree (minus 17 degrees Celsius).
Partygoers bundled up in extra layers, wearing warm hats and face masks, dancing and jogging in place to ward off the cold.
There was also tighter security than ever after two terrorist attacks and a rampaging SUV driver who plowed into a crowd on the very spot where the party takes place. The party went off with no major problems.
“Auld Lang Syne” and “New York, New York” played as the crowds cheered.
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11:50 p.m.
Mariah Carey has made it through her set on “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest” this year after bungling it last year.
Carey had technical difficulties during a live performance of her hit song “Emotions” on the ABC show in Times Square last year. She stopped singing, paced the stage and told the audience to finish the lyrics for her.
This year, she made it through cleanly despite frigid temperatures — and despite asking for hot tea that wasn’t there. She joked it was a “disaster.” Carey performed her hits 1990s “Vision of Love” and “Hero.”
It was the second-coldest Times Square New Year’s Eve on record. The temperature was only 10 degrees (minus 12 degrees Celsius) close to midnight. The coldest ball drop celebration was in 1917, when it was only 1 degree (minus 17 degrees Celsius).
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10 p.m.
The metal pens holding revelers waiting for the ball drop in frigid Times Square aren’t all packed with people.
It’s one of the coldest New Year’s Eves on record in Times Square, just 10 degrees (minus 12 degrees Celsius) at 10 p.m. The coldest on record was in 1917, when it was only 1 degree (minus 17 degrees Celsius) outside.
People are jogging around to stay warm or bouncing and dancing in place. Others are standing and shivering.
It’s New York City resident Corinne Bird’s third time in Times Square for the New Year. She’s there with a friend from North Carolina who hadn’t been before. They say they’re already cold — and they’ve been waiting only about a half-hour.
When midnight hits, the glittering crystal ball will drop, confetti will rain down and fireworks will light up the sky to ring in 2018.
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9:25 p.m.
Ohio resident Michael Waller says he made a snap decision Saturday evening and drove overnight from Columbus to New York City so he could ring in the New Year in Times Square.
Waller says he arrived at about 8 a.m. Sunday and has been standing in frigid temperatures in a metal pen with a front-row view of the glittering Waterford Crystal ball. It’s one of the coldest Times Square New Year’s Eve celebrations on record.
Waller says he didn’t want to stay home. It was on his bucket list so he decided to make the trip.
Waller is among thousands of people who have been waiting for hours for the midnight ball drop to usher in 2018.
Mariah Carey will perform again on “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve,” hosted by Ryan Seacrest. She bungled her performance last year.
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5:30 p.m.
The National Weather Service is reporting it is only 14 degrees in New York City, making the New Year’s celebration in Times Square among the coldest on record.
The coldest-ever ball drop was in 1917, when it was only 1 degree outside. In 1962, it was 11 degrees. And in 2008, it was 18 degrees.
Revelers were already lined up hours before the celebration Sunday, braving the cold to catch a glimpse of the glittering crystal ball that falls at midnight.
Mariah Carey will perform again on “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve,” hosted by Ryan Seacrest, after a bungled performance last year.
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1:45 p.m.
Several thousand revelers are already gathering in New York City’s Times Square to celebrate a frigid New Year’s Eve.
People assembled at the so-called “Crossroads of the World” more than 12 hours before the midnight countdown to 2018. Security was extremely tight throughout Manhattan after a year that saw several fatal attacks on large crowds.
It could be one of the coldest celebrations on record. The temperature is expected to be in the teens with wind chills dipping below zero.
Mariah Carey will perform again on “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve,” hosted by Ryan Seacrest, after a bungled performance last year.
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9:30 a.m.
New Yorkers, celebrity entertainers and tourists from around the world will pack into Times Square Sunday for what’s expected to be a flashy but frigid start to the new year.
Revelers are expected to begin lining up in the bitter cold in the early afternoon, hours ahead of when the city will mark the start of 2018 with a glittering crystal ball drop, a burst of more than a ton of confetti and fireworks.
It could be one of the coldest celebrations on record, held under tight security after a year that saw several fatal attacks on large crowds.
The temperature is expected to be in the teens.
Mariah Carey will perform again on “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve,” hosted by Ryan Seacrest, after a bungled performance last year.
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