COWs in Brooklyn Heights cause stir before July 4 fireworks

City rolling out every inch of its security apparatus

July 3, 2025 Mary Frost

AT&T and T-Mobile technicians install COWs — temporary cell towers — in case 100,000 people start using their phones all at once during the Fourth of July fireworks in Brooklyn Heights. Brooklyn Eagle Photo by Mary Frost

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BROOKLYN HEIGHTS — Giant towers packed with electronic equipment and a generator running around the clock appeared this week at the foot of Remsen Street next to the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, prompting local residents to ask, “What in the world is going on?”

These towers, packed with electronic equipment on Remsen Street in Brooklyn Heights, are part of Fourth of July security measures. Brooklyn Eagle photo by Mary Frost

The apparatus looked like something NASA might have whipped up.

Kept up at night by the running generator and worried about the installation’s large footprint and a blocked fire hydrant, neighbors asked Councilmember Lincoln Restler, D-Brooklyn Heights, Greenpoint, to dig into the issue.

The structures, Restler discovered, are “COWs” — or Cells On Wheels. COWs are temporary cell towers installed before a big event, like this year’s Macy’s Fourth of July fireworks display, which will bring more than 100,000 ticketed viewers to Brooklyn Bridge Park and roughly 4,000 city workers (quite the contentious issue) to the Promenade.

Restler worked with the city to reduce the equipment’s footprint, ensure emergency access to the hydrant, and reduce the hours the generators will run.

“I’m glad they heeded many of our concerns on the COWs,” Restler told the Brooklyn Eagle. “The generator will turn on for a test around 2 p.m. [Thursday], then off again until noon Friday. The equipment and fencing will be removed Saturday morning, July 5.”

AT&T and T-Mobile technicians told the Eagle the temporary cell towers would enable the mobile network system to handle the 911 response should something happen during the fireworks event and 100,000 people all start using their phones at once.

COWs are just the beginning

The COWs are just a small part of the massive security preparations New York City has put in place for the fireworks. Planning started months ago, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch and Kaz Daughtry, deputy mayor for Public Safety, said during a press briefing Wednesday.

“We continue to operate in a heightened threat environment due to tensions and across the country,” Tisch said. NYPD and federal partners are “closely monitoring” the threat from lone wolf actors — but there are no known specific or credible threats to this year’s celebration, she emphasized.

According to Councilmember Lincoln Restler, the towers are “COWs” or Cells On Wheels. Brooklyn Eagle Photo by Mary Frost

Despite the lack of a specific threat, the city is rolling out every inch of its massive security apparatus. Here are just some of the July 4 emergency measures listed by Tisch and Daughtry:

Thousands of uniformed officers and plainclothes personnel “out in full force.”
NYPD Aviation Unit and drone teams to provide real-time views of the crowds.
The Joint Operations Center in Downtown Brooklyn to be fully activated.
The NYPD, FDNY and the U.S. Coast Guard will “secure every inch of the East River.
Numerous street closures.
NYC’s Intelligence Division, Joint Terrorism Task Force partners and Counterterrorism teams are monitoring “every possible lead, both domestic and international, in real time.”
Explosive detection canines, heavy-weapons teams, Harbor Units inspecting piers and vessels, and plainclothes officers “looking for anomalous activity.”
Temporary flight restrictions.
More than 200 FDNY EMTs, paramedics and firefighters standing by with ambulances and special emergency response vehicles on land, plus 11 FDNY marine units and three additional boats staffed with paramedics on the water.

If you see something unusual, find an officer, call 911, or the Counterterrorism Hotline at 1-888-NYC-SAFE, Tisch said. “Every call is thoroughly investigated, and one call can make all the difference.”

You can also text JULY4NYC to 692692 for updates from the city.