55bmw Rockefeller Christmas Tree Lighting in Midtown to Go On as Planned

The popular Christmas tree lighting ceremony at Rockefeller Center, about four blocks from where the chief executive of UnitedHealthcare, Brian Thompson, was fatally shot on Wednesday morning, will go on as planned on Wednesday night.

Even as a manhunt for the gunman was underway, officials at Rockefeller Center said the annual ceremony would take place at 8 p.m. Eastern time. The event will be broadcast live on NBC.

The tree lighting, whose origin dates to the 1930s, is a signature holiday event that is typically patrolled by a large contingent of police officers. Jeffrey Maddrey, the chief of department for the N.Y.P.D., said there would be a “massive police presence” for the event on Wednesday, including aviation and canine units.

More than 50,000 multicolor LED lights will illuminate a 74-foot-tall tree weighing 11 tons, which was taken into Manhattan from Massachusetts last month, and performers are to include Kelly Clarkson, the Backstreet Boys, Thalia and the Radio City Rockettes.

New York City Tourism + Conventions, which promotes tourism in the city, said that about 30 percent of the city’s annual visitors arrive between October and December, and that the shooting was not expected to alter the numbers. A spokeswoman, Tiffany Townsend, said in an email that the city expected about 7.5 million travelers this holiday season, up from about seven million in 2023, and was on track to meet its current forecast of 64.8 million visitors in 2024.

Ceylan Yeğinsu contributed reporting.55bmw