CBS Information tv reported witnesses saying a truck rammed into the group earlier than its driver jumped out and began exchanging gunshots with police.
A white truck crashed by way of a barricade “at a excessive charge of pace,” witnesses Jim and Nicole Mowrer instructed CBS.
“As soon as it was previous us, we did hear gunfire, noticed police working that route,” Nicole Mowrer stated.
“As soon as the gunfire stopped, we stayed within the alcove till the gunfire stopped, got here out into the road, and got here throughout plenty of – a number of individuals who had been hit, (we) wished to see what we may do to assist.”
One eyewitness instructed CNN he had seen a truck “slamming into everybody” on the pavement, including that gunshots had been additionally heard.
One other individual instructed the US information outlet that folks had been “yelling and screaming” and working to the again of a nightclub that she was in. She added that the membership went into “lockdown”.
Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry referred to as the incident “a horrific act of violence” and urged individuals to keep away from the world.
New Orleans is among the most closely visited locations in america and the incident got here shortly earlier than town hosts a significant soccer sport, often called the Sugar Bowl, that includes groups from the College of Georgia and Notre Dame.
Policing was heavy over the New 12 months’s, in accordance with town, as authorities braced for the crowds.
The town police division had introduced staffing at “100 per cent, with an extra 300 officers helping from companion legislation enforcement companies”, together with on horseback and utilizing unmarked items.
In November 2024, two individuals had been killed and 10 others injured in two separate shootings alongside a New Orleans parade route and celebration attended by hundreds, native media reported.
In February 2017, a pickup truck pushed by a person who police stated seemed to be extremely intoxicated ploughed right into a crowd of spectators watching the primary Mardi Gras parade in New Orleans, injuring greater than 20 individuals.