At least 14 people were killed, and about 30 others were injured early on New Year’s Day when a man drove a pickup truck with the Islamic State group flag into a crowd in the French Quarter of New Orleans, city in Louisiana, US, and opened fire. Officials have labeled it a deliberate attack, and the FBI is investigating it as a potential act of terrorism.
The attack unfolded on Bourbon Street, known worldwide as one of the largest destinations for New Year’s Eve parties. Large crowds had gathered in the city ahead of the College Football Playoff quarterfinal at the Sugar Bowl, which was postponed.
Security concerns and prior planning
Months before the deadly New Year’s Day attack, city officials in New Orleans had modeled potential scenarios in which a vehicle could enter Bourbon Street at various intersections, specifically using a Ford F-150 pickup truck, similar to the one involved in the attack, news agency Reuters reported.
According to a study, such a truck could reach speeds ranging from 12 to 70 mph while driving through the crowded tourist area. However, despite these concerns, the city had decided to install new street barriers—bollards—that can only withstand impacts at speeds of up to 10 mph. This decision was based on an engineering analysis and city bidding documents, the report said.
These new bollards, planned to be installed before the Super Bowl in February 2025, were not yet in place during the New Year’s Day attack. The Reuters report claimed that the documents reviewed made it clear that these bollards would not have been able to stop a vehicle traveling at moderate-to-high speeds, highlighting a potential flaw in the city’s security planning. The decision to prioritize ease of operation over crash safety was largely due to problems with the old bollard system, which required frequent maintenance.
New Orleans had been under pressure to improve its security measures since at least 2020, following a string of deadly vehicle attacks globally, including the 2016 attack in Nice, France, that killed 86 people.
Weaknesses in the city’s Bollard system
The city’s earlier bollard system, installed in response to increasing concerns about vehicle attacks globally, had its own set of issues, the Reuters report said. The initial system used the Heald HT2 Matador, which allowed workers to move barriers along tracks in the street.
However, this system became frequently inoperable because debris, such as Mardi Gras beads, jammed the tracks. Additionally, the mechanism to lock and unlock the barriers was often submerged in what one source, speaking to Reuters, called “Bourbon Street juice”—a mix of street grime, spilled drinks, and trash—making it difficult for workers to operate.
Following these issues, city officials decided to choose a new bollard system rated for 10-mph impacts. These bollards were lightweight and easier to operate daily, with each post weighing just 44 pounds compared to the 86-pound posts rated for 20 mph.
However, this new system, which was intended to be installed by a single city worker each day, would not have prevented the attack on New Year’s Day. The system selected was insufficient to stop vehicles traveling at higher speeds, such as those modeled in the city’s earlier engineering analysis, where an F-150 could have reached speeds of 50 mph or 70 mph.
Attack execution and vulnerabilities in security planning
On New Year’s Day, the attacker, identified as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a US combat veteran from Texas, took advantage of gaps in the city’s security planning.
He managed to squeeze his seven-foot-wide pickup onto an eight-foot-wide sidewalk between a drugstore and a police vehicle, then accelerated and drove through the crowd. Jabbar died after a shootout with police, and US federal authorities have said he was radicalized and had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State.
The city’s earlier security modeling, which focused on scenarios where a vehicle entered Bourbon Street on the road, did not account for the possibility of a vehicle entering from the sidewalk. The study found that most of Bourbon Street’s narrow sidewalks had existing barriers, like fire hydrants and streetlights, which would have prevented vehicles from entering.
However, Jabbar exploited this vulnerability by driving his vehicle onto the sidewalk.
Since the attack, New Orleans officials have faced criticism regarding their security planning, with many questioning whether the city had left residents vulnerable while transitioning from the old bollards to the new ones. Despite these concerns, both the old and new systems would not have stopped the vehicle from entering the area, the Reuters report said, quoting the city’s security planning sources.
Challenges in security
New Orleans city officials have been studying how to improve New Orleans’ security infrastructure since 2020, with a focus on protecting Bourbon Street from vehicle attacks. In 2017, following international vehicle attacks, the city installed its first bollard system.
However, this system’s inefficiencies, combined with the challenges of protecting pedestrians while allowing normal vehicle and pedestrian traffic, led to the decision to replace it with a more easily operable system.
The decision to select the 10-mph bollard system was based on the city’s need to balance safety with operational efficiency. The new bollards were easier to install and remove daily compared to higher-rated bollards that would require specialized equipment to move.
