Muffins Stolen at Gunpoint and other headlines from the Citizen app
Pastrami a go-go and other wry tales of the city #36
My neighbors missed the Citizen alert about a pet monkey on the loose after an earthquake in April 2024 rattled its cage.
“It’s too stressful to read these,” grumbled a man who lives in my building and considers himself retired from just about everything, including community news.
He’s not the only one. Others say that they are overwhelmed by the negative news that comes in sometimes three times in five minutes.
Posts on cell phones alert users of crimes and incidents, from the tragedies of subway suicides, murders, and robberies around New York City to dogs lost and found, cats reunited with their owners, sex offenders who live nearby, fires, people stuck in elevators, carbon monoxide detectors going on, and national alerts that could impact us.
As a newshound who stays informed of goings-on around the city, a slow day is when a notification hasn’t arrived within a 10 minute span. The app boasts 10 million users, according to FOXBusiness.
The Citizen app, first released in 2017, provides users with real-time crime and safety alerts and allows us to read updates and add videos and comments. Sometimes there are hundreds of comments. The app aggregates 911 calls for fire, police, and EMS emergencies.
Muffins Stolen at Gunpoint is one of the alerts I’ve received.
Sometimes, I want to read more. What happened? Did someone not get a turkey?
The truck wedged itself under the bridge. Driver nowhere to be found.
What happened to the pants?
I’m not sure what to make of this one.
With soap?
Be on the lookout.
So did the two people faint because of the naked man on the tracks?
Were they watching Rocky?
Happy news!
UFOs?
Exactly how does this happen?
Helpful alert but how did the pulling of an emergency alarm trigger a power outage?
Over 300,000 people notified. He won’t get too far in midtown.
Fighting. Again.
This sounds like a great ad for Warby Parker. Get glasses!
The important detail in the story is furry.
I’ve never seen these words used this way.
So much for being inconspicuous.
This is very scary to read.
My first thought was Axe deodorant. The indefinite article threw me off.
Really bizarre but not out of the realm of possibility. This is New York City. Anything is possible.
I'm afraid to sign up for the CitizenApp as it's too addictive. As to the items you posted, I'm concentrating on the opposum. He's clearly a registered Independent. Someone needs to tell him his vote won't count for much and he's a spoiler. :-O