Barriers protecting pedestrians were removed before the New Orleans attack for repairs because they were deemed “unreliable”, city officials have said.
Officials had hoped to replace the “non-operational” barriers with a new bollard design by February, when the city is scheduled to host the NFL’s Super Bowl.
While the works were taking place, the barriers were replaced with white gate barriers which were managed by the New Orleans Police Department, according to the City Of New Orleans.
Video shows how the attacker’s vehicle managed to get around a police vehicle and on to Bourbon Street before carrying out the attack, in which 14 people were killed.
According to the City of New Orleans, the work to replace the barriers began in November and 11 of the 16 bollards had been completed.
“The remaining locations are on track for completion prior to February 2, 2025,” the authority said in a statement.
“The new bollards will be operational once the construction is complete, and the new bollard system has been accepted.”
Cybertruck driver had gunshot wound to head – and was burnt beyond recognition
A person whose body was found in a Tesla Cybertruck which exploded outside a Trump hotel in Las Vegas had a gunshot wound to his head and was burnt beyond recognition, police say.
Military ID and a passport with the name Matthew Livelsberger -a name matching that of the person who rented the vehicle – were found in the Cybertruck.
Police also found two handguns, both registered to Mr Livelsberger, and they believe the gunshot wound was “self-inflicted”.
It was previously reported, following confirmation by officials speaking on condition of anonymity to the Associated Press (AP) that Mr Livelsberger’s body was found in the vehicle.
Police say they do not have “100% confirmation” that he is the person that was found, as the body found in the car was burnt “beyond recognition”.
However, they say they have “confidence” that it is Mr Livelsberger, due to his tattoos. They are currently awaiting DNA results before confirming.
They also say they do not believe there is “any further threat from the subject”.
According to police, the vehicle was first rented in Denver, Colorado, on 28 December and was driven through New Mexico, and Arizona, before reaching Las Vegas.
Police say, from what they have seen so far, Mr Livelsberger is the only person who they have seen in the vehicle.
Las Vegas police ‘not ruling out’ links to New Orleans case, says sheriff
Las Vegas Sheriff Kevin McMahill says his force are “not ruling out” links between the Tesla Cybertruck explosion and the New Orleans attack.
The FBI earlier appeared to rule out any connection between the two incidents, saying there was “no definitive link”.
However, Mr McMahill said his force were “not prepared to rule out or rule in anything”.
“Every tip and lead that comes in, every piece of evidence comes in, we don’t discount it,” he said.
“It’s an interesting thing in these kind of investigations that, if these turn out to be simply similarities, (they are) very strange similarities to have.
“There’s lots more for us to do in this investigation.”
here are the main things we learned after Vegas news conference
We’ve had a few updates on the explosion of a Tesla Cybertruck outside a Trump hotel in Las Vegas.
Here are the main things we learned:
- The driver of the vehicle had a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head before the explosives went off and was left burnt “beyond recognition”;
- Police are pretty sure the man is US serviceman Matthew Livelsberger, but are still awaiting “100% confirmation”;
- Las Vegas Sheriff Kevin McMahill said he was “not prepared to rule out” a link between the blast and the New Orleans terror attack, despite the FBI saying earlier there was no “definitive” connection;
- Mr McMahill noted the “strange similarities” between the two cases, including that Mr Livelsberger and New Orleans suspect Shamsud-Din Jabbar served at the same military base.
That’s all for now – stay with us for more updates through the evening.
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