New Orleans (AFP) – New Orleans cleaning crews washed down Bourbon Street Thursday after authorities largely concluded their on-site investigation of a ghastly New Year’s attack as the iconic nightlife hub prepared to reopen. Street cleaners rumbled onto the landmark road through the French Quarter early in the morning, scrubbing surfaces of any signs of the tragedy in which 14 people were killed when a US Army veteran inspired by Islamic extremists rammed a rented pickup truck into unsuspecting revelers. The bloodshed only ended when the suspect crashed and was shot and killed by police after an exchange of gunfire.
The Ford pickup that police say was the attack vehicle has been removed from the scene, and authorities were busy placing new barricades at the entrance to Bourbon Street, which is normally open only to foot traffic during periods of celebration. Video footage circulating online shows the suspect, identified by authorities as US citizen Shamsud-Din Jabbar of Texas, driving the pickup slowly through traffic on Canal Street after 3:00 am Wednesday, then turning sharply around a police vehicle and barreling down Bourbon Street to begin his deadly rampage.
Bourbon and its many drinking establishments, jazz and blues clubs, restaurants, and strip joints were to remain closed to the public until 2:30 pm (2030 GMT), according to authorities, but commercial vehicles appeared to be allowed in to restock bars and other venues. Police drones hovered overhead as crews finalized cleanup operations.
On sidewalks nearby, a sense of bewilderment and anguish coursed through onlookers on a cloudless blue-sky morning, including the thousands of fans in town for a major American college football game known as the Sugar Bowl. University of Notre Dame fan Bob Sindall, a retired teacher, flew from Maryland for the game against the University of Georgia. “My kids were quite nervous,” he told AFP steps from Bourbon Street. “I was nervous, but I’m assuming that most of the security was all pretty much in place by the time we got here,” Wednesday afternoon, he said. Sindall expressed confidence about safety for himself and the city, but said he would “probably” steer clear of Bourbon Street after the game.
Despite the heinous attack, tourists still lined up at a well-known cafe on Canal Street serving coffee and beignets, the famed local pastries. Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry was seen walking Bourbon Street and inspecting the site with staff and investigators. On Canal, dozens of people lined up to give blood at a blood drive set up for the victims of Wednesday’s carnage, which the Federal Bureau of Investigation was probing as an act of terrorism.
© 2024 AFP
