Only days after a Saudi suspect rammed through a crowded Christmas market on Friday, December 23, in Magdeburg, Germany, killing five people and injuring 200, another car attack occurred in New Orleans, the capital city of Louisiana, in the United States.
At least 10 people have been killed and 30 injured after a pickup truck drove into a crowded New Orleans street on New Year’s Eve, ending the year and opening 2025 in a horrifying tragedy for many.
Eye witnesses reported that a truck crashed into the crowd at high speed. Then the driver got out and started firing a weapon, with police returning fire.
The injured have been taken to at least five different hospitals.
“It did involve a man driving a pickup truck down Bourbon Street at a very fast pace, and it was very intentional behavior,” Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick told reporters.
“This man was trying to run over as many people as he possibly could … it was not a DUI (driving under influence) situation,” she added. Kirkpatrick revealed that two police officers were shot by the perpetrator, noting that they were in “stable” condition.
She made it clear it “is not a terrorist event“. But city Mayor LaToya Cantrell appeared to contradict the police classifying the the incident as a “terrorist attack,” although she added that investigation is still ongoing.
Finding a middle ground, Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry simply sad “A horrific act of violence took place on Bourbon Street earlier this morning,” he posted on X, urging people to stay away from the area where the attack took place.
Videos trending online show people fleeing the scene of the incident after gunshots rang out.
The incident came just hours before the kickoff of the Allstate Bowl, a college football quarterfinal held in the city’s Caesars Superdome, with thousands expected to attend.
New Orleans has seen shootings and cars colliding with crowds at past parades.
Police are still investigating and have not ascertained the motive and actual circumstances behind the incident.
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