By Zachary Stieber
Contributing Writer
Ten people are dead and dozens of others are injured after a vehicle plowed into a large crowd in New Orleans, officials in Louisiana’s most populous city said on Jan. 1.
The vehicle was driven into the crowd at approximately 3:15 a.m. local time on Canal and Bourbon Street, officials said.
A man drove a pickup truck down Bourbon Street, New Orleans Police Department Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick told a press conference.
“This man was trying to run over as many people as he possibly could,” she said.
Officials said that the man, who has not been named, opened fire on police officers after crashing his truck. Two officers were hit and were in stable condition at nearby hospitals.
The man “was struck and subsequently declared deceased on scene,” the police department said in a statement. “Further information on the suspect is not currently available for release.”
The man killed 10 people, officials said. At least 35 others were rushed to area hospitals with injuries.
New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell described the incident as a terrorist attack. The FBI confirmed it is investigating the attack as an act of terrorism.
The White House said that President Joe Biden has been briefed on the attack. Attorney General Merrick Garland has also been briefed, the U.S. Department of Justice said.
“My heart is broken for those who began their year by learning people they love were killed in this horrific attack, and my prayers are with the dozens who were injured, including the New Orleans Police Department Officers who risked their lives to save others,” Garland said in a statement.
Cantrell said she had been in contact with the White House and Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry.
“A horrific act of violence took place on Bourbon Street earlier this morning,” Landry wrote on X. “Please join Sharon and I in praying for all the victims and first responders on scene.”
Alethea Duncan, the assistant special agent in charge of the FBI’s office in New Orleans, said that an improvised explosive device was found and that testing is underway to determine whether the device was viable.
People have been urged to stay away from an approximately eight-block radius as the investigation unfolds.
The location is near where the city’s New Year’s parade wrapped up on New Year’s Eve and just blocks from the Caesars Superdome, which was set to host the Allstate Sugar Bowl game later on Wednesday.
“The FBI is the lead investigative agency, and we are working with our partners to investigate this as an act of terrorism,” a spokesperson for the agency wrote in an email.
Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill said on X that she was praying for the victims and their families and would “ensure they get justice for this appalling act.”
