New York chaos as shots fired with buses torn apart and torched in Times Square

New York chaos as shots fired with buses torn apart and torched in Times Square Mayhem descended in Times Square as New York Knicks fans celebrated their NBA triumph as a school bus was torched and gunshots heard near 42nd Street Gunshots were heard and fans set fire to a school bus as they wrecked vehicles after New York Knicks victory celebrations descended into chaos. One bus was completely torched in Times Square after people lit pieces of clothing on fire and through it inside while at the same time other revellers were dancing on top of the vehicle. Images showed the out of hand celebrations with the buses destroyed as they stood parked near the 42nd Street subway station. And around 2am gunshots were fired near 42nd Street and Broadway, police said. People crouched in panic while others ran for cover although preliminary reports suggest there were no injuries. The Knicks beat the San Antonio Spurs 94-90 in Game 5 of the NBA Finals on Saturday night and won the series 4-1 - rallying from double-digit deficits in all four of those victories. Soon after, rowdy fans were clashing with police, smashing windshields, scaling scaffolding, light poles and a statue, climbing into and atop school buses in Times Square and trying to hitch a ride on a moving fire truck. Later, one of the buses was engulfed in flames. The NYPD said there were multiple arrests but wouldn’t have a total until later on Sunday. Knicks owner James Dolan, speaking in San Antonio after the game, urged fans to stay calm. “We need to tell everybody in New York that we know that they’re celebrating, we want them to have a great time,” said Dolan, interrupting guard Josh Hart’s press conference. “Please be safe. Don’t get hurt, don’t hurt anybody.” The city will officially celebrate the Knicks on Thursday with a parade and City Hall ceremony. As the clock ticked to the final buzzer on Saturday night, anxiety that had dominated the game’s first three quarters gave way to euphoria. An orange-and-blue-tinted fever dream that started with the Knicks’ first playoff game two months ago ended in the third title in their 80-year history. Fireworks boomed over Brooklyn and Central Park. Fans flocked to Times Square and ran through the streets. Outside the Garden, they sang the team’s anthem: “Go New York, Go New York, Go!” President Donald Trump, a longtime Knicks fan who attended Game 3 at the Garden with Dolan, congratulated the team in a post on his Truth Social platform. “What a year it has been but, even more so, what incredible playoff wins we have all witnessed, especially the last four - Maybe the greatest in the history of basketball,” Trump wrote. After several dozen arrests throughout the playoffs and violence after Games 3 and 4 in New York that left officers injured and a teen in a coma, police girded for unrest as Saturday bled into Sunday. “As we celebrate, be responsible, look out for one another, stay safe, be smart, and make this a night that reflects the very best of our city,” Mayor Zohran Mamdani said on social media. “Let’s go Knicks.”