Gov. Andrew Cuomo has a grim prediction about what will happen to the state's coronavirus infection rate due to Thanksgiving.

Cuomo was blunt about gatherings for the holiday -- saying, "Don't be a turkey."

At Wednesday's news briefing, Cuomo noted COVID-19 cases spiking in Canada following Canadian Thanksgiving last month. He urged New York to have small Thanksgiving dinners to avoid spreading the virus."Because Thanksgiving is a holiday where people come together, and if you don't have a real fear about COVID you're going to come together and you'll see people saying 'nobody's going to stop me from coming together,'" says Cuomo.

The governor's message comes days after he signed an executive order prohibiting gatherings of more than 10 people indoors, including in private homes.

News 12 viewers have had mixed responses -- some saying they've either scaled down or canceled holiday plans, while others day they're going full speed ahead.

Dr. Chid Iloabachie, of LIJ Valley Stream, says the more people at in-house holiday gatherings, the riskier it will be.

"It's important to understand that though it's your family, though it your friends, from an infectious perspective, we are all a consequence of everywhere we've been recently and everyone we've interacted recently," says Illoabachie.Thank you!Create reply with Thank you!Ok, thanks.Create reply with Ok, thanks.Thanks for checking!Create reply with Thanks for checking!Are the suggestions above helpful?