At 3:15 on January 1st a truck came barreling through Bourbon street in New Orleans killing at least 14 people and injuring many others. The attacker's name was Shamsud-Din Jabbar who used to be part of the United States Army for ten years. This all came before the Sugar bowl played between Notre Dame and Georgia and because of these horrific events the game had to be delayed. Even though it was eventually played, extra security was used to secure the premises. How can this also affect the Super Bowl? One of America's most watched sporting events that will be played on February 9, at the same venue.
Attack and other details about the attack
A man intentionally drove a pickup truck through a crowd of people and killed 15 and injured others. The attacker was identified as Shamsud-DIn Jabbar, a citizen from Texas, and previously served in the U.S. military. Jabbar had a weapon and two potential explosive devices were located in his car. Even though New Orleans did have safety measures Jabbar got around those safety measures. “We had a car there, we had barriers there, we had officers there, and he still got around,” Kirkpatrick said. FBI Deputy Assistant Director Christopher Raia said at a news conference that the attack was an act of terrorism and that the attacker had planned this attack out. Witnesses said that a white truck crashed into people on Bourbon Street at a high speed, and the diver then started firing a weapon from inside the vehicle. Jabbar
How the attack affected the Sugar Bowl
The Sugar Bowl which is a college football playoff game was being played at caesar superdome a nearby football stadium. The playoff game was postponed to check for bombs or any other security threats in the stadium. The stadium was locked down to make sure it would be safe for the game. At the game there was extra security located at the stadium. Even with the extra security some fans ended up selling their tickets or not going to the game because of the events that took place. In result of the events a moment of silence was held before the game started in remembrance of the victims of the attack.
How could this affect the Super Bowl
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noam told reporters that “Right now we have no specific credible threats to this event… which I think should give us all a sense of security. Even though there is no credible threat because of how big this event is in the United States ontop of the already high security there will be more to make sure it will be safe. “The Super Bowl is the biggest homeland event we do every single year.” Noem told reporters. The Super Bowl gets a SEAR 1 rating - meaning there is a federal coordinator tha is in charge of the security, in this case Eric DeLaune, the special agent in charge of Homeland Security. DeLaune is a Louisiana native and securing the game is personal for him, he said.
Final Thought
This tragic event happened because of ineffective security precautions that were taken that fateful night. The tragedy could have easily been prevented from happening. As of February 3rd Plaintiffs that were affected by the attack have filed a civil lawsuit against the city's leadership. They are accusing the city of negligence which cost many innocent lives.
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