NORAD is Preparing to Track Santa Over Utica and Rome

NORAD is preparing to track Santa's journey across Central New York as he delivers gifts to all the good little boys and girls.

Despite COVID-19 challenges, the NORAD Tracks Santa program is on schedule to track Santa on Dec. 24, as they've done every year since 1955. NORAD says adjustments are being made to carry out the special mission safely.

The NORAD Tracks Santa call center is being adapted due to ongoing public health concerns due to an increase in COVID-19 cases. This year, only a small number of volunteers will be answering the NORAD Tracks Santa toll-free number, 1-877-Hi-NORAD, on Dec. 24. Callers who cannot reach one of these volunteers will receive a recorded update on Santa's current location.

[NORAD]

NORAD is committed to tracking Santa while keeping the military, their families, and dedicated call center volunteers safe.

Track Santa at http://www.noradsanta.org or use the new mobile apps that offer up-to-the-minute Santa stats. Soon you can get the app via Google Play or Apple App, and you can follow with OnStar and Amazon Alexa.

The official NORAD website will go live on December 1, 2020. It allows you to explore Santa's village in the North Pole, tour Santa's house, play games in the arcade, and listen to Santa's favorite songs on the music stage. In the Library, they can learn about Santa, his magic sleigh, and holiday traditions.

Wikipedia says the tradition began in 1955 after a Colorado Springs-based Sears Roebuck & Co. advertisement misprinted the telephone number for children to call Santa. Instead of reaching Santa, the phone number put kids through to the CONAD Commander-in-Chief's operations "hotline." At the time, the Director of Operations, Colonel Harry Shoup, had his staff check the radar for indications of Santa making his way south from the North Pole. Children who called were given updates on his location, and a tradition was born.