New Orleans begins 2025 experiencing attack via vehicle and firearm

Mardi Gras beads and Ieye masks. (Getty/tripsavvy.com)

A man drove a vehicle into pedestrians on New Orleans’ Bourbon and Canal streets. Multiple people were killed and injured as a result. According to the police, the man was driving fast and was deliberately aiming for pedestrians. The driver had a “phase 2” to his plan, which involved firing his weapon. Law enforcement fired back, resulting in the driver reportedly being killed.

From Newsweek:

Multiple people have been killed after a vehicle drove into a crowd in New Orleans in the early hours of New Year’s Day.

The city’s emergency information service, Nola Ready, said that at least 10 people had died and 30 were injured.

“The 8th District is currently working a mass casualty incident involving a vehicle that drove into a large crowd on Canal and Bourbon Street,” the agency said.

Newsweek has called the New Orleans Police Department for more information.

Why It Matters

Bourbon Street is situated in New Orleans’ French Quarter, a popular tourist district, and would have been busy with people celebrating New Year’s Eve. It was reported that thousands attended celebrations that were held along Bourbon Street.

What To Know

At around 3:15 a.m. in New Orleans, the vehicle drove into pedestrians on Bourbon and Canal Street.

Emergency services were called to the scene and Bourbon Street has been closed off.

Witnesses told CBS News reporter Kati Weis that the vehicle crashed into a crowd on Bourbon Street at high speed, and then the driver got out and started firing a weapon and police returned fire.

Police have said that the strike by the vehicle into the crowd appeared to be intentional and that the driver had not been taken into custody.

Speaking to the press, New Orleans Police Chief Anne Kirkpatrick said that the man driving the vehicle was travelling at a “very high speed.”

“This man was trying to run over as many people as he could,” she said. Two officers were also shot, but both are in a stable condition.

Mayor of New Orleans Latoya Cantrell said at a press conference that New Orleans “was impacted by a terrorist attack.”

However, a New Orleans FBI agent told the press that the incident was “not a terrorist event.”

The agent added that they were investigating whether a “improvised explosive device” which was found on Bourbon Street was a “viable device” or not.

Additional Reading:

Laws, J. (2025, January 1). New Orleans attack: Multiple killed in Bourbon Street Crash. Newsweek. Link.

NBC News also provides updates on this story.

Category: Crime