"Leaf" it to New York's Strongest – Leaving no Leftovers after the Thanksgiving Day Parade!
November 26, 2025
While the annual Thanksgiving Day parade in New York City may bring thousands of spectators, lots of floats and balloons, numerous entertainers and one Santa – it also leaves behind tons of trash and debris. But thanks to more than 180 dedicated members of New York's Strongest, there won't be a single "leftover" remaining along the route.
When parade viewers start heading home to their family meals, our employees get down to work. This year, the New York City Department of Sanitation cleaning team will consist of:
- 164 Sanitation Workers, and
24 Officers.
The crews will use:
- 38 mechanical brooms,
- 36 hand brooms,
- 23 backpack blowers, and
- 29 collection trucks to get the job done.
Following the parade in 2024, Sanitation crews picked up more than 36 tons of debris.
About the New York City Department of Sanitation
The Department of Sanitation (DSNY) keeps New York City clean, safe, and healthy by collecting, recycling, and disposing of waste, cleaning streets, attacking the scourge of illegal dumping, and clearing snow and ice. The Department operates 59 district garages and manages a fleet of more than 2,000 rear-loading collection trucks, 450 mechanical brooms, 705 salt spreaders, and several dozen bike lane operations machines. Under the Adams Administration, the Department is aggressively cleaning more parts of the City than ever before, including over 1,000 long-ignored areas spread across every neighborhood. With the highest wintertime uniformed headcount in 20 years, DSNY is more equipped than ever to remove snow and ice from the approximately 19,000 lane-miles of City streets.
Press Release #25-37