The new year had not been ushered in by good news in some sectors, and New York officials were still investigating what they called “four terrorist bombings” in the region. New Year’s Eve events in the city had created a number of ugly and violent incidents, and on the nation’s highways, 58 fatalities were recorded.

Locally, well over 100 people took advantage of a Lawrence taxi service providing free rides to the tipsy and no major accidents had been recorded.