Man slams truck into crowd on New Orleans' Bourbon Street, killing at least 10 people
Ten people were killed and dozens injured early Wednesday when a man intentionally drove a pickup truck into a crowd on Bourbon Street in New Orleans' French Quarter as revelers were celebrating the new year, officials said. New Orleans Police Department Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick said the man drove through barricades and hurtled down Bourbon Street in "very intentional behavior" before opening fire on officers.
"This man was trying to run over as many people as he could," said Kirkpatrick, adding that two police officers were hit by gunfire but were in a stable condition.
Mayor LaToya Cantrell referred to it as a likely "terrorist attack," but an FBI official who spoke along with the other officials Wednesday morning did not characterize it that way. The officials did not provide any information about the man who drove the truck, and his condition and whereabouts were not immediately clear.
The popular tourist district was full of New Year's Day revelers at the time.
Witnesses told CBS News reporter Kati Weis that a white truck crashed into people on Bourbon Street at high speed, and the driver then got out and started firing a weapon, with police returning fire.
The City of New Orleans said in a statement posted online that 30 people were transported to area hospitals with injuries and 10 people were confirmed dead. Kirkpatrick later indicated that more than 30 people were hospitalized.
Weis saw multiple people on the ground being treated for injuries near the intersection of Bourbon and Canal Streets.
Jim and Nicole Mowrer were in New Orleans visiting from Iowa and witnessed the incident. Nicole told CBS News they had watched the city's fireworks display and were enjoying the New Year's Day atmosphere in the French Quarter when they heard crashing noises coming from down the street. They said they then saw a white truck slam through a barricade "at a high rate of speed."
The Mowrers said they heard gunshots after the crashing noises and went to try to help people they found wounded, but realized the victims had died.
"We were pretty, pretty close to where it started," she said, estimating that the truck hit people only about a block away from where they had been walking.
"Once it was past us, we did hear gunfire, saw police running that direction," Nicole said. "Once the gunfire stopped, we stayed in the alcove until the gunfire stopped, came out into the street, and came across a lot of — several people who had been hit, [we] wanted to see what we could do to help."
The Mowrers said the victims they saw had injuries from the truck impact, and they did not see any apparent gunshot wounds. They said they left the area once emergency responders started arriving.
Ten people killed in New Orleans as vehicle ploughs into crowd
Ten people have been killed and 30 others injured after a vehicle drove into a large crowd in New Orleans, city emergency officials have said.
Nola Ready, the emergency preparedness department, said that the incident happened around 03:15 local time (08:15 GMT) on Bourbon Street. Reports from witnesses, which police have not confirmer, said that the driver then began firing a weapon.
A CBS reporter saw multiple people with injuries on the ground at the intersection of Bourbon and Canal streets.
A man who was in a bar during the incident told the BBC that after police let him leave he "walked past dead and injured bodies all over the street".
The BBC has verified video from the scene that shows a person lying on the ground as others gather round, before what appears to be gunshots are heard, causing the crowd to scatter.
Another graphic video shows two injured people lying in a street.
Witnesses told CBS that a vehicle ran into a crowd, and then the driver began firing a weapon, prompting police to return fire. Police have not confirmed this report.
Whit Davis, from Shreveport, Louisiana, told the BBC that he had been on and around Bourbon Street since the beginning of the evening. He was inside a bar when the incident occurred, and said he did not hear shooting or crashes because the music was so loud.
"Then people started running and getting under tables like it was an active shooter drill. Then the police held us in the bar for a while and when we were finally allowed to leave we were walking past dead and injured bodies all over the street," he said.
"Everyone was just completely in shock," he added. "I visit New Orleans frequently and have never seen anything close to this bad."
Jim and Nicole Mowrer, who were visiting New Orleans from Iowa, told CBS that they were in the French Quarter when they heard crashing noises coming from down the street.
They said they saw a white truck slam through a barricade "at a high rate of speed", then heard gunshots after the crashing noises.
"We stayed in the alcove until the gunfire stopped, came out into the street, and came across a lot of - several people who had been hit, [we] wanted to see what we could do to help," Nicole said.
They tried to help people they found wounded, but realised the victims had died. They said the truck hit people only about a block away from where they were walking.
The couple said the victims they saw had injuries from the truck impact, and they did not see any apparent gunshot wounds. They said they left the area once emergency responders started arriving.
Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry says in a post on X that he was "praying for all the victims and first responders on scene".
"A horrific act of violence took place on Bourbon Street earlier this morning," Landry wrote.
At least 10 people killed on New Orleans’ Bourbon Street after a car drives into crowd, officials say
At least 10 people are dead and 30 were injured in what police are calling a “mass casualty” event in New Orleans after a vehicle drove into a crowd during New Year's celebrations early Wednesday, city officials said.
The City of New Orleans confirmed the figures in a statement on its website and said people were hurt in a “mass casualty incident involving a vehicle that drove into a large crowd on Canal and Bourbon Street.”
The New Orleans Police Department said in a statement reported by NBC affiliate WDSU that "mass casualties are reported on Bourbon and Iberville Streets" and that a vehicle may have plowed into people.
Historic Bourbon Street, in the French Quarter, is a popular tourist area filled with bars and restaurants and was expected to be busy overnight.
Police said Tuesday that they expected the city to be busy as locals and visitors rang in the new year. New Orleans Police Department said it would be staffed at 100% and would draft in another 300 officers to help keep the peace.
This is a developing story, check back here for updates soon.
New Orleans mayor says New Year’s Day mass casualty incident was a ‘terrorist attack’
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell is calling the New Year’s Day mass casualty incident that killed 10 people and injured 30 a “terrorist attack.”
The FBI is investigating what occurred early Wednesday, when a vehicle drove into a crowd on New Orleans’ famed Canal and Bourbon Street in the first hours of New Year’s Day.
Alethea Duncan, an assistant special agent in charge of the FBI’s New Orleans field office, said officials were investigating the discovery of at least one suspected improvised explosive device at the scene.
Earlier, the New Orleans Police Department said it was responding to a mass casualty incident Wednesday that included fatalities. NOLA Ready advised people to stay away from the area.
It said the injured had been taken to five local hospitals.
The incident came at 3:15 a.m. toward the end of New Year’s celebrations in New Orleans and hours before the kickoff of the Sugar Bowl, a college football quarterfinal held in the city’s Superdome, with thousands expected to be in attendance.
Earlier this week, the police department said security would be beefed up ahead of New Year’s Day celebrations. The department said it would be staffed at 100% capacity with 300 officers from partner agencies and a strong presence of marked and unmarked vehicles.
