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At least 10 people were killed and 35 injured after a man drove a pick-up truck into a large crowd in the heart of New Orleans in an attack that the FBI is investigating as an “act of terrorism”.
The attack occurred early on New Year’s Day along Bourbon Street in Louisiana’s largest city, one of the main streets in the historic French Quarter, which is filled with bars, restaurants and musical venues, and attract domestic and international visitors.
Anne Kirkpatrick, superintendent of the New Orleans Police Department, said that at around 3.15am local time a man drove a pick-up truck down Bourbon Street at a “very fast pace”.
“It was very intentional behaviour. This man was trying to run over as many people as he possibly could,” Kirkpatrick added. “He was hell bent on creating the carnage and the damage that he did.”
Kirkpatrick said two police officers had been shot by the driver and were in stable condition. The FBI later issued a statement saying the perpetrator of the attack was dead.
“This morning, an individual drove a car into a crowd of people on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, killing a number of people and injuring dozens of others. The subject then engaged with local law enforcement and is now deceased,” the FBI said. “The FBI is the lead investigative agency, and we are working with our partners to investigate this as an act of terrorism,” it added.
LaToya Cantrell, the mayor of New Orleans, said the city had been affected by a “terrorist attack”, without giving further details.
“What I’m asking at this time are prayers for those who lost their lives in the city of New Orleans due to this tragedy,” she said.
In a statement, US President Joe Biden said he had been “continually briefed since early this morning by federal law enforcement leadership and my homeland security team”.
Biden said he had directed officials to “ensure every resource is available as federal, state, and local law enforcement work assiduously to get to the bottom of what happened as quickly as possible and to ensure that there is no remaining threat of any kind”.
President-elect Donald Trump described the incident as an “act of pure evil” in a statement on his Truth Social media platform, and said his incoming administration would “fully support the city of New Orleans as they investigate and recover” from the attack.
Alethea Duncan, an FBI assistant special agent in New Orleans, told reporters an improvised explosive device had been found at the scene of the attack. The FBI was working to confirm whether the device was “viable”, Duncan said.
New Orleans is often teeming with visitors during the holiday period, but the city was especially packed on New Year’s Eve this year because of the “Sugar Bowl” American football game planned for Wednesday between the University of Georgia and the University of Notre Dame.
The sporting event was expected to go ahead as scheduled despite the attack, but local officials were asking people to avoid the area where it took place.
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