The New Orleans Superintendent of Police said the city is working to ensure the Caesars Superdome is safe for Wednesday’s scheduled Sugar Bowl matchup after at least 10 people died and 35 suffered injuries when a man drove a car into people on Bourbon Street on New Year’s Day Wednesday morning.
No. 2 Georgia is scheduled to face No. 7 Notre Dame at 8:45 p.m. ET in a College Football Playoff quarterfinal.
“We want our community and our visitors to continue enjoying, there’s so much to enjoy about New Orleans. We are going to make sure our routes and our Superdome are safe today for the game,” Kirkpatrick said. “And yet, we had this tragic event and we’re sorry to everyone in our community, but we do want you to go about the day. Just stay away from Bourbon (Street).”
The Sugar Bowl Committee revealed it is working with officials following the tragic event.
“The Sugar Bowl Committee is devastated by the terrible events from early this morning,” CEO Jeff Hundley said in a statement, as captured by WGNO-TV in Louisiana. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families. We are in ongoing discussions with authorities on the local, state, and federal levels and will communicate further details as they become available.”
The attack happened around 3:15 a.m. on Wednesday when a man drove a pick-up truck down Bourbon Street in what Kirkpatrick described as “very intentional behavior.”
Mayor LaToya Cantrell called it a “terrorist attack.”
It was not a drunk-driving incident.
The man shot two officers after crashing his vehicle and both officers are stable, Kirkpatrick said, and sources told The Post the man was shot and killed.
“This man was trying to run over as many people as he possibly could,” Kirkpatrick said. “He was hellbent on creating the carnage and the damage that he did.”
New Orleans is a popular tourist spot, and has received hordes of Georgia and Notre Dame ahead of Wednesday’s third and final College Football Playoff quarterfinal matchup.
The winner of that matchup faces Penn State in the semifinal on Jan. 9 after the No. 6 Nittany Lions defeated No. 11 Boise State, 31-14, on Tuesday night.
