celebrations in san francisco. it was clear. so you could actually see the fireworks. >> yeah. >> and for whatever reason, my neighborhood was not exploding with fireworks last night. and to that i say thank you. and so does my dog. >> same. it was it was wild. i was preparing for it usually starts around sunset yesterday. didn't hear a peep. and then as i got home last night i heard 1 or 2. yeah, but nowhere near the amount i saw previous years. >> it was just enough to let you know that you're alive, but not enough to make you want to run and scare your dogs. yeah. beautiful sunrise. i hope your january 1st in 2025 gets off to a great this is an this is an >> announcer: this is an "abc news" special report. we are coming on the air with breaking news in new orleans new orleans. an act of terror after a man killed a pickup truck through

bourbon street killing ten people and injuring dozens and the driver came out of the truck and open fire on officers injuring two before being shot and killed. the improvised devices were also discovered in and around the scene of the attack in those devices are now being tested. the white house as president biden briefed on the attack and has been in touch with the mayor of new orleans. i want to bring a senior correspondent aaron katersky and what is the timeline help us and pulled? this as three local time. there was a crowd on bourbon street a mix of tourist and local land white pickup street on bourbon street and get around barriers to ramming an attack accelerated him very, very fast plowed into the crowd up pedestrians killing at least ten, injuring roughly three dozen. initially, the police responded to the first call for active shooter because there were

gunshots. went the suspect exited the vehicle he shut up the new orleans police officers into coofficers shot by gunfire and taken to the hospital in stable condition. and improvised devices found at the scene. the authorities have since tested them and determined at least one of them appeared to be a viable device. so it adds a degree of complexity to a evolving situation right now the police are scanning the french quarter using drones, cameras and other technology to see if they are additional possible devices. the ones they are currently finding our being destroyed. with a question when you think about new year's eve when you know bourbon street full of people. how does something like this happen and close enough for this attack to unfold? and able to get around the barriers that is a flaw you cannot have in a situation like

this. diane the fbi has taken the lead in this case. they have now have been investigating as an act of terrorism. that is an official statement from the fbi. they are very concerned about the circumstances surrounding this. in fact, the suspect had a weapon and they found one viable explosive device. this was clearly an intentional act. i am told by multiple sources they are looking at possibility of the suspect may have come into the country recently and a fluid situation. you are looking for a potential to any kinds of ties to isis. it is nothing finalized but treated as highest priority right now. the attorney general briefed and the president of the united states briefed about this and that vi directory involved in this case as well. again so many people and ten dead and 20 plus people injured. again, law has been on high

alert since 2023 after the attack, horrific attack in israel. fbi director in counterparts wanting month after month we are in a heightened environment where every sector of terrorism was on fire and potential for acts of violence. said this codifies what we have seen from early december with two attacks on former president trump. then candidate tromp and now we have a situation where the fbi is looking at potential act of terrorism. resources have been flooded into the area. a search. background check on the gun. where was the gun purchased? any information they can find out about the vehicle? they're searching surveillance cameras to see if they can get a timeline in terms of how the vehicle moved through that particular area and through that particular crowd. but again, cold blooded act of murder. law enforcement treating this with the highest priority. >> and i want to bring in the former new orleans mayor, marc morial for more. mayor, thanks

for joining us. what's your reaction? first of all, just to hearing that this happened the way that it happened on new year's eve in bourbon street. >> i'm sickened by the entire incident. i am in great pain for the families of those who've lost people, for the two law enforcement officers who have been injured. what would compel someone to carry out such an act? and clearly it seems as though he planned even more if they found explosive devices or potentially explosive devices in his vehicle. this is an area of great festivity. the french quarter is about a little bit less than one square mile. bourbon street, of course. the main street of bars and lounges and places where people go and new year's eve and new year's morning are perhaps one of the best places to be on new year's eve and new year's morning. i think for the city and for the

leadership of the city, the double challenge is to navigate this while at the same time ensuring that people will be safe. today and tonight. there are literally hundreds of thousands of people in the city, including tens of thousands who are there for the notre dame georgia sugar bowl game, which is part of the college football playoff. and in a little bit over a month, new orleans will host the super bowl. so i'm sure the leaders of the city and i've been in close in touch with the mayor and the law enforcement community and the civic and business community will want to do everything they can, they can do to ensure the safety of those who are there, who want to enjoy tonight's football game. and of course, in about a month, the super bowl. so they've got a lot to deal with. the investigation of the current incident, but ensuring that the next two big events can be carried out in a safe fashion.

>> and let's talk a little bit more about that, mayor. one, how surprised are you and what's your reaction just to the fact that this truck was able to make it onto bourbon street? we have at least one eyewitness saying that the normal big, powerful steel barricades weren't up and that they had sort of more flimsy plastic barricades. again, just one eyewitness account, but that's what he's telling us. and do you think they can go forward with the sugar bowl tonight in these circumstances? >> you must you must go forward with the sugar bowl. because the first thing that people who commit acts of terrorism want to do is intimidate people, bring about fear. we have to be strong and resolute. the adjustments to security need to be made and can be made. and i think why those barricades were not up if they were not up is going to be, i think, central to this investigation. a lot of investments have been made post nine over 11 with respect to bourbon street, to try to ensure that egress and ingress by

vehicles is not easy. so there's a lot of answers, a lot of questions, and a lot of answers that i think many of us want with respect to how this truck traversed from canal street, which is a street where traffic is allowed to flow. but the opening of the mouth, if you will, of, of the french quarter is really at bourbon and canal. so that truck obviously took a right. the barriers are down about a block, usually at the corner of iberville and bourbon. and how that truck got into that area. i think we all want to know right now. i think we've got to keep our keep our thoughts. and i think many of us are on pins and needles hoping that, you know, want to know the identities of those who have lost their lives, the 28 to 30 people who are injured and are at the hospital, the to law enforcement. so this is a tragic event. i think it smells, talks, walks and smells like an act of

terrorism. and i know that federal law enforcement is being cautious investigating it that way. but it seems it looks it feels like someone that had a heinous motive to carry out a mass killing. >> and the fbi now also says, as pierre already pointed out, that they are also investigating this as an act of terror. now, i want to bring in elizabeth schultz at the white house, because we are told, elizabeth, that the president has been briefed and he's already spoken to the current mayor of new orleans. what else are you hearing from the white house? >> right, diane. the president has been briefed. the white house says he will continue to be briefed throughout the day. he spoke with the mayor of new orleans earlier this morning to offer his full support and the full resources of the federal government. the president expected to be in touch with senior fbi and department of homeland security leadership throughout the day. we do know that the white house is calling this horrific news right now. the president says he will be right now continuing to talk to the fbi. the fbi is leading this investigation, diane, as of now, the president at this hour is

scheduled to go from his home in wilmington to camp david. we are waiting to see if there will be any updates to the official schedule to see if the president does make any further comments on this. diane. >> all right, elizabeth, thank you. and morgan norwood has been speaking to eyewitnesses to this attack. morgan, what are they telling you? >> well, witnesses, diane, describe an absolutely chaotic scene, of course, unfolding around 315 this morning. you know, some witnesses saying that they took off running. i spoke with one right as we were going on the air for the special report, shortly after all of this unfolded, right after that initial press conference. and he told me that he took off running once he heard all of the commotion, hid out in a nearby bar or some sort of lounge. also talked about hearing those gunshots. and initially he thought they were fireworks. and of course you can toss. you can just imagine how confusing that must have been in the middle of, you know, a celebration for the new year. here's what else he had to say. >> so bourbon street, like he said, probably about 3:10 a.m. we were heading towards canal,

which is the way the truck was coming towards us. we ducked off into a nightclub because we weren't sure what was going on at the other end, and it looked like just nothing we wanted to see, so we just ducked off into a club. by the time we got in, five girls had ran in frantically and hid under chairs. so us knowing where we were, we ran upstairs to the balcony to make it less available. if something was following inside. and what we witnessed was body after body mangled just as far as you could see, we counted ten and at least six were instantly clearly deceased and they were trying to get everybody just to stay

inside. but everyone had just completely disappeared. like after these people ran over, i think we were the only ones outside on the balcony, and we took video just for the sheer shock. like you don't see stuff like that on city streets and just no one was helping them. like, that was kind of the first crazy thought we had is why is no one helping them? they wouldn't let us out. and obviously, like i told you, some were very clearly deceased, but others were yelling out and. it's just. >> it's a lot to process and you can hear how difficult it was for him to process that. diane, talking about the whole situation in graphic detail, the panic and just the commotion and the chaos that unfolded right there on bourbon street in new orleans. diane. it sure was. >> and i know he's raising a lot

of questions about the barricades and what was and wasn't set up as well. morgan, we're going to dig a little deeper into that. but i want to bring back aaron katersky, because aaron, not only is new year's eve obviously a huge day in new orleans, a huge day specifically on bourbon street, but this is a city also preparing for the sugar bowl tonight. and now you're saying there are discussions about whether or not that should even happen. >> there are ongoing discussions. multiple law enforcement sources have told abc news as to whether the game needs to be postponed or outright canceled because of the number of resources it would take to secure it in light of what happened on bourbon street overnight. as of now, the game is still on, but the conversations are can it be played? can it be played safely? given how distracted the new orleans police department is going to be with this ongoing investigation, they have called in additional officers from neighboring departments from all around the state to help with security so they, as of now, plan to play the game. but those conversations are ongoing about how you do this safely, because

we know in the immediate, most urgent thing is to determine whether there are additional viable devices in addition to the 1 or 2 they may have found already. >> and i want to bring back former new orleans mayor marc morial to address that. because, mayor, you're saying they have to go forward because the goal of terror is to get people to change their behavior, to stop doing things out of fear. but how can new orleans guarantee that they can put on the sugar bowl tonight in a safe way? with all the factors that aaron just mentioned, and looking even further than that, how can they guarantee they can do the super bowl safely if they can't prevent a pickup truck from driving onto bourbon street on new year's eve? >> so let me answer the second question first, because there's a historic example. i was mayor in 2001 when we were going to host the super bowl in january, february of 2002. and at that time, the super bowl became a national homeland security

event. what that did is it triggered federal law enforcement and law enforcement around the country to come in and work with the new orleans police department to harden, strengthen and expand the security in connection with the super bowl. and that's been standard operating procedure for super bowls. super bowls are somewhat different than a college football game, although it be a bowl game. if there is thought to postpone the game for a day or two. one thing that is implicated is you have visitors from georgia, visitors from notre dame who are there, who have paid to come to new orleans, who are staying in hotel rooms at at some expense to themselves. you've got to weigh the impact on them as well. certainly security is number one, but i do have great confidence that if law enforcement, federal, state and

local work together, they can ensure security for the sugar bowl. it means, i think, that these bowl games and these major college football games may need to be given a national homeland security designation, like the super bowl, because these games are these college bowl games in the playoffs is an international. it's a global event with the eyes of the world on new orleans for a college football game tonight. so i'm hopeful that they will find a way that it can go forward. of course, if, if it's going to be postponed for a day or 2 or 3, the implications on all on safety being number one. but the implications and the inconveniences on people have to also be weighed in connection with this. i have confidence that they can make it safe. i have confidence that we need to be strong. new orleans has to be strong as a city. we need to be

strong as americans and not allow these terrorists and these haters, whoever they are, to interrupt the flow. that's their intent to disrupt and interrupt. >> and i want to go to our chief justice correspondent, pierre thomas. pierre, the attorney general is now reacting to this attack. what sticks out to you from his statement? >> well, i'm struck by the fact that he felt the need to respond so quickly, diane. he said, quote, the country woke up this morning to news of a terrible tragedy in new orleans that killed at least ten people and injured many more. he talked about the fact that his heart is broken, but he also gave an update on the resources that are being applied to the situation. not only is the fbi there, i can now confirm atf is on the scene as well. and also, interestingly, he pointed out in the station in a statement that the national security division of the justice department has been activated on this this incident that tells you a lot right there that this is not being treated at all as some sort of random event. this is

being treated as having the potential of terrorism, be it tied to international, domestic or otherwise. again, all the resources of the federal government now aimed at determining who exactly the suspect is, who he has ties to, what are his connections to try to come up with a firm statement and answer that they can give to the nation. they know that in a couple of hours, the country is going to want answers as to what is behind this and whether this threat is centralized and local to new new orleans, or whether they need to do more nationwide. >> and i want to bring that point to retired fbi agent and abc news contributor richard frenkel, because, richard, how did they go about answering those questions now, particularly with the suspect dead? >> so they're going to be going through everything in the suspect's life. they're going to be going back to everything that he has done, everyone he has touched, everyone he's communicated with social media where he works. they're going to

be looking at every single piece of this person's life and seeing if this is an inspired event. in other words, was he online being inspired by one of the terrorist groups overseas? was he just doing this on his own for another reason? was he working with others? was he helped in making the ieds, or at least being directed in how to make the ieds? we have seen that in the past, where people in the u.s. have built the ieds, but they've been directed from overseas on how to do that. so they're going to be looking at all of that, and they're going to be looking forward because they want to see if anyone that this individual has been dealing with may also be inspired or be part of this conspiracy, and want to do a further act, whether it be at one of the football events or any other event in that area or throughout the united states. >> and i want to bring in abc

news contributor, former nypd chief of detectives robert boyce, as well. robert, you worked for many years to secure times square on new year's eve. i think of the security in new york and how deep it goes. blocks and blocks and blocks. what is your reaction to something like this happening in a place like bourbon street, new orleans on new year's eve, and what do you think law enforcement has to do now? >> well, i think, diane, look at exactly what time it happened. 315 that's after significantly after midnight. so things seem to load. the threat level seems to decrease somewhat. now, the next night you have a big you know, you have a big night on the sugar bowl. so what resources sent home that has to be looked at as well just to get them ready for the following night. so these things will be looked at. but in the immediacy is to identify this bad actor, find out who he is and what his motivation was. and the big thing now is look at what you do have as an investigator. you have the car. can you trace that back? you have the gun. can you

trace that back? do you have does he have a phone on him? we have fingerprint devices that we mobile that we can see if we can, if he's on file anywhere to find out who this person is. and then to go back and make, make the determination. but for right now, it's considered a terrorist attack. and if you look at the whole community of terrorism, you'll see that there's been a lot of activity in europe over the last past year. so you look at these things and you say, okay, this happened here. now where is this individual? was he radicalized online? is he a lone wolf or is he bigger part of a bigger conspiracy? these things are important because there's decisions to be made today, whether they're going to go forward with that game. and i agree with the mayor. i think they are going to go forward with the game right now. we did the same thing in new york. and on halloween in 2017, there was a halloween parade just blocks away from a terrorist attack. and the parade went on. so these things, these things are all being determined right now with very high levels. but right now everybody is involved here, and you'll see resources from around the state, state troopers and other police departments coming in to aid the new orleans police

department as they go forward into the day. >> and pierre, one of the sources of the investigation now is these devices. right. the fbi say they found what appeared to be devices. they say at least one was viable. what's the latest on that and how much does that pose a current threat? >> well, that is the ongoing concern. are there more devices you don't want members of the public or anyone else stumbling around and finding anything else that's this dangerous? the other thing is the gun used in the attack against the police. and we'll note from the ag's statement that a couple of officers were injured in the exchange with the suspect. again, my sources say clearly the suspect had time, had put some thought into what he was going to do, both in terms of having the gun and the improvised explosive devices. also, the fact that, you know, he determined that he would use the vehicle as a method to kill as many people as as possible. again, sources emphasizing that this was such a cold blooded,

intentional act that they've got to get as much information as possible, as soon as possible, to determine whether this person had any kind of regional support, local support, to make sure, again, that this is a contained incident. that is the most important thing right now to make sure that this is localized and there's no one else out there with follow on attacks coming. we don't have any information to that effect, but my sources are saying that is the key point of emphasis right now. >> and we do have some footage of the aftermath. i do want to warn anyone watching this may be graphic and hard to look at, but richard, i want to ask you. about what pierre just touched on in terms of needing to make sure at this point that this is a contained attack, that this was, you know, a one person job aimed at this one event and that this isn't part of a larger scale issue. how do you go about doing that and ensuring that other events, including the

sugar bowl in new orleans tonight, if it does go forward, are safe? >> well, first off, what they're going to do is they're going to make sure and it's being done. is that the area in and around the attack is safe and secure, that there are no more ieds in that area. then they're going to go to the location where this terrorist, in my opinion, this terrorist was and see if there's any indications that he may have done other pre-planning for other locations or actually put ieds out. so that's also happening as we speak. and then on a completely different level, you're going to have fbi, dhs, local pd, they're going to be going out and securing the facility for the football game tonight. you know, we did this when i was in newark when i was in new york. we you know, we dealt with the world series. we've dealt with all the athletic events, you know, at

the meadowlands. this is not unusual for law enforcement to go and make sure that everything is safe and secure. the thing that's going to be different is that they're going to raise the level on this. you know, everyone is being searched before they come into the games. they may actually take a little bit more time with each person going through. i'm sure that they've gone through the stadium once. they're probably going to be going through the stadium again to make sure that there is no chance of having any ied or any other type of potential incident while at the g of the bowl tonight. maybe the safest place in the u.s. because of all the safety and security that all the law enforcement agencies are going to take to make sure that no one is injured there tonight. but again, they're going to be looking very hard at this individual and making sure that he did not do

something that may come out in the future, or that there is no one else working with him that may be doing or planning on doing an attack. uh- also in the future, and i want to bring that point. >> abc news contributor and former fbi agent brad garrett, because brad richard just spoke to one part of the equation, which is making sure that this was a contained attack and not part of a larger plan. but there's also the concern about copycats. how worried are you that someone else watching this may now get this idea to try something similar? >> i'm seriously concerned. i mean, just think about a few days ago we were talking about this horrible attack in germany of a car ramming. the problem, diane, is that car ramming is sadly so easy to do. it's a low tech event. that's why isis, for example, promotes it. you can you can radicalize lone individuals to go do it. we'll see if that fits this case at all. and you just

find an opening. you find a spot like the guy did in germany to launch the attack. i mean, it's yes, he planned it. it looks like. i mean, he had ieds. he had a weapon. he must have scoped out how he could get around whatever barricades. and jimmy, the gentleman you were talking to earlier was talking about that. he thought the barricades were totally inadequate, that this guy figured that out. he figured out a way, and he. he didn't wait till late in the morning where there would be less people. but, you know, what might be interesting is, did the security go down after midnight? that's something else they'll look at. but the key here is he he planned this. he executed it. he pulled it off. my guess is there was an act to. why would he have all the ieds if there's not an act to which could have made this even worse? but, you know, the key is you got to

make sure that you've got everything around this guy. people involved, if there's any, who built the ieds and searches of his house, searches of his car, that's always already been previously mentioned, but really digging into his social media, which they're going to use, analysts either from the fbi or somebody else to really drill down on specifically, what did he say? what did he write? who does he talk to? things that he has ordered, for example, the components to an ied. you can buy all of them online. and it's legal because separately, they're not an ied. so all of that becomes important in putting your arms around what you have here. >> and i want to go back to elizabeth schultz at the white house, because, elizabeth, we mentioned before, the president has been briefed. he's been in touch with the mayor. now, we're also hearing from some louisiana lawmakers, including house speaker mike johnson. what are you hearing on that front? >> that's right diane. house speaker mike johnson saying in a statement that this was

a vicious attack on innocent people celebrating the new year in new orleans. of course, mike johnson is from louisiana. he says that this is an act of pure evil, and justice must be swift for anyone involved in this. we're also hearing from senator bill cassidy of louisiana. he is vowing a vigorous and prompt response from the federal government to aid in every part of this investigation, i should say, diane. mike johnson is scheduled to speak to meet with president elect trump today at mar-a-lago. we have yet to hear anything from president elect trump on this, on this. but we do know that president biden continuing to be briefed from the fbi, from the department of homeland security, the white house so far, diane, calling this just horrific news. >> all right. elizabeth schultz at the white house, thank you. and for those just joining us, we are going through the latest on this attack in new orleans. ten people killed overnight after a pickup truck rammed a crowd on bourbon street. dozens more are injured. police say the suspect then came out of that truck, opened fire on officers, injuring two officers. i

want to bring in our senior investigative correspondent, aaron katersky. aaron, what's the latest here? and what do we know about the suspect at this point? >> we know the suspect is dead. we know he was shot and killed by police after he fired on new orleans police officers who were rushing to the scene after the vehicle ramming the gunfire exchange seems to have occurred in and around the vehicle. we know the suspect may have fled a bit, and that's where the officers also found the improvised devices. and they are still searching for a number of other poten potenl devices beforee they're willing to say that the french quarter is safe. i think for reasons that, you know, because police don't fully have a handle on what was intended here, they have to consider the possibility of an additional suspect or suspects whether this person had any help, because this does appear to be a rather sophisticated operation, or at least something that was well thought out to have a vehicle

ramming attack, to have firearms, to have improvised devices. they're using drones and cameras to go all through the french quarter to see if they can spot any, but also if they can spot anyone who may have planted them in advance of the vehicle ramming. one suspicion right now is that this was meant as a multi pronged attack. the vehicle ramming and then firing on anyone who responded, but then also perhaps as ambulances or other officials flooded into the scene, you would have these improvised devices go off. the authorities have no idea. but that's one suspicion right now. >> i know they're looking into that. and again, ten people are dead, dozens injured, including two officers, and no doubt dozens more witnessed the attack. one of those people is jimmy corcoran. he's joining us right now to tell us a little bit more about what he saw there on bourbon street. jimmy, i know this is really difficult to talk about, so we thank you for

sharing your story with us. can you tell me how this all started and what you saw? >> just a regular night. a friend of mine had never experienced new year's on bourbon, so i decided to take him. i was the designated driver, so i was sober. remember? everything. everything was fairly normal for a new year's in new orleans. we were heading back towards canal when it looked like just a large commotion or something was going on up there. we weren't really wanting to fight through that. we just figured it was just some nonsense. so we ducked off into a nightclub and within two minutes of being in there. 4 or 5 frantic females run in, duck under tables, get out from under the tables, run some more. so

figuring new orleans for new orleans, we thought it was a shooting or something going on that was going to follow into this club. we ran upstairs to the balcony, knowing there was a balcony up there and it would be our better spot. and once we got out there, what we seen wasn't anything i wish anyone else to see. just a melee of looking bodies, mangled for both directions. the beginning we were closest to iberville, so pretty much right where it started at. it's what i would think is it's worse because those people had no heads up and the footage was showing there. that is some of the footage that we did not want to share on

facebook, but that is a mother. she had a wedding ring on her finger, just the body's positioning, the terrible. and the man, the gentleman down there, he had tire marks on his stomach when they rolled him over to check on him. he also had tire marks on his back. he was completely crushed. i mean, there was an easy six instantly, visibly deceased, just based on body position and blood and graphic details. and they wouldn't let us. i mean, it was minutes, several, several minutes after witnessing this. they wouldn't let us outside. and i'm trained in cpr, response and all of that due to the nature of my job. and they wouldn't let anyone go help. and i understand. and also at that

time you had the green military style officers on foot, probably ten of them running down bourbon towards the direction the truck went with m-16s. they basically kept us where we were for about an hour and a half or so while they secured the scene. and yeah, we were just left in there with our thoughts and visions. >> jimmy, you say that after you went up, you saw police following this truck on foot with their guns out. can you talk to me about what you saw from that point? >> those green officers there, several like them. i can't say if it's those exact ones, but at least ten of those were coming from canal on foot. m-16s ready position down bourbon. but the truck was completely out of sight. >> and you said you initially

thought it might be a drunk driver. what's your reaction now to hearing law enforcement say this not only was an intentional act, but they're investigating it as an act of terror. >> well, watching my local news and hearing that they've already detonated a couple of ieds, i feel a lot more lucky than i did six hours ago, because this guy at any point could have threw those out the window. he could have shot us at us. i mean, it's hard. it's hard to contemplate all the what ifs when all you see are these bodies and you can't imagine someone would want to do this on purpose. i mean, all these people were somebody special people. and this morning they're not going to be there. >> something that never should have happened for sure. and

aaron, i saw you nodding as jimmy was talking about the ieds detonated. what is the latest on the devices? >> there have been a number of controlled detonations in and around the french quarter, not necessarily confirmed viable devices, but other suspicious items. they have found at least one, possibly two viable devices that were planted around the scene of the vehicle ramming attack. once they determined they were viable, they were also destroyed to render them, you know, inoperable. and so nobody gets hurt. but there have been several controlled detonations, and it does show you what a complex investigation this is turning out to be with the three pronged approach to this attack the vehicle ramming, the use of the firearms, the improvised explosive devices, and the authorities are still continuing to do a specific grid search throughout the french quarter for any more possible devices. >> and pierre, this suspect is dead now, so law enforcement won't be able to question him.

but what's going into now? figuring out who he was and how he did this and why he did this? >> clearly, they're looking for any kind of identification on the suspect. the truck is a great source of potential information in terms of where the truck was either purchased or stolen. in addition, how was the firearm received obtained? and i'm also being told that coming on the heels of what took place in germany, the christmas vehicle attack in germany, and now this vehicle attack in new orleans, that there will be enormous pressure on law enforcement throughout the country for large scale events where large scales, large numbers of people are on the street. you'll remember, diane, that we have the inauguration coming up in just a few weeks. and again, given that former president trump had two assassination attempts on his life in recent months, the amount of security in the city was already being stepped up, with several thousand more local

officers from the region being brought in to help dc police. that was already ongoing, but i think right now, given the fact that we've had this act on new year's day, in a moment where people are waking up this morning to celebrate the new year, something this horrific that the federal government again will be under pressure, number one, to brief on this incident as soon as possible. and number two, to give local law enforcement officials around the country a sense of what they need to do, if anything, to enhance security and at least to make the public more aware. if you see something to say something, that's the message i'm getting from sources this morning. >> and i want to go back to former nypd chief of detectives robert boyce for a little bit more on that process. robert, how complicated is an investigation like this when you have this multi-pronged approach to this attack? as aaron laid out and now trying to figure out who this suspect is and more about him, well, diane is a very good chance. >> they have a tentative subject already, and that's from

multiple abilities, investigative wise. the car, where did it come from? who rented it? if it's rented f-150 truck in an urban environment, it's a little unusual. at least it certainly is in new york. so you look at these things. where did that come from? the gun. he had the serial number, the atf, with their databases available to them immediately. all right. if he had a cell phone, a cell phone. and you also have mobile print device, you can if he's on file, you can pick that up on that as well. so there's a lot going into this right now. i wouldn't be surprised if they have something tangible right now to run with. if you remember the 1993 world trade center attack that was made from that identification was aided by a vin. a vin number recovered at the scene, and they went to the rental place and they already were up on that. so these things are happening in real time right now. there's a big investigation once you identify your subject and then you know so much more than you did prior to that. obviously, if it's a lone wolf or an organized attack, which it might be, and that's that's what

they're prepping for right now, is this part of the first part of a component of an organized terrorist threat? and that's that's the big danger here. >> and i want to bring back former new orleans mayor marc morial for a little bit more reaction here. marc, what do you make not only of this happening, but hearing that eyewitness jimmy, detail how it looked from his vantage point and his complaints that the substantial barricades that new orleans has available. he says, we're not up. >> yeah. i'm extremely concerned if those barricades are not up. and clearly what the leaders of new orleans are going to have to consider as to whether there ought to be a time, maybe 2 a.m, when the french quarter should shut down, because by the time 3 a.m. comes, the crowds begin to dissipate. but the reputation is you party till the sun comes up. but when you're trying to ensure the safety of people and mardi gras is different. mardi gras, the french quarter closes at

midnight or 1:00 traditionally, so that cleanup can begin. i think they're going to have to rethink the entire plan around the french quarter as quickly as possible, certainly to by tonight. it may be that they've got to close off sections of the quarter to people, except for ingress and egress to hotels. so it's a modifications are going to have to be made. but certainly i think the investigation has to focus on why those barriers were down. it's 3:15 a.m, the nights are closing. some bars have closed by then. all have not because there's no mandatory bar closing time in new orleans. so there's got to be a lot more. but i think going forward, the leaders of the city have to rethink the entire security and the entire plan around the french quarter. it's been a free flowing place

for a long time, and maybe a little bit of that has to be dialed back to ensure people's safety. and i think those barricades, those barriers are going to have to be hardened and they're going to have to be strengthened. so there's a lot of work that the mayor, the civic community and the business community need to do fairly quickly because the french quarter is an economic engine not only for new orleans, but for the state and for the region. special events. i mean, right after the sugar bowl, you've got the super bowl, then you've got mardi gras, then you've got the french quarter fest and the jazz fest and the essence festival coming in and a multiplicity of events. and so it is not tenable to close down the french quarter for a long period of time. so a lot of work has to be done to harden the security, but also to see what happened with those barriers.

>> and we're looking at live footage now, investigators walking through that scene, trying to secure it and ensure that, among other things, that there are no explosive devices planted anywhere there. i want to bring back chief justice correspondent pierre thomas, because pierre, in the image that you see of the back of the truck that rammed this crowd on bourbon street, there appears to be a flagpole on the back. what are investigators saying about that? >> well, they're looking at that. obviously, that black symbol can be used as a symbol for isis. it can be. and we're being told that they're at least looking at the possibility of whether this individual, the dead suspect, has any ties to isis. they're also looking at the possibility that this person may have recently entered the country. again, all to be determined. it's a fluid situation. early in the investigation. they're hoping to have some answers to that. also, to give you a sense of the concern, i'm checking with some of my sources and major police departments around the country, and i can tell you they're

asking for looking for information about this. some of that is being provided by law enforcement in situations like this. if it's a high enough level event, they will send out information to police departments around the country so that those agencies can begin to get a sense of whether they need to augment or change their security. given the fact that this does appear to be a fairly well planned out attack that is front of mind to law enforcement right now and again right now, the amount of resources that are being used to check the fingerprints of the suspect, to see if he shows up in any databases, to check information, what they can glean from the truck, information they can glean from the firearm. all these things are being done to try to create a composite picture of this individual, to inform them of what this is. at the moment, that is the highest priority, and we're awaiting for some suspects. excuse me, sources, to give us some updates on where they are in this

investigation at this point. >> and i want to bring in retired atf special agent scott sweetow. scott, what goes into this part of an investigation when there are devices found on the scene, law enforcement saying at least one is viable, and now there have been some controlled detonations. what can you tell us about that part? >> good morning. the first thing is they have to make sure that the public is no longer in danger, because people assume that once the shooting stops, that everything is over. but as we've seen in cases around the united states in the past, sometimes you have complex attacks where people will use a combination of some sort of a kinetic weapon or a firearm or a vehicle, and they also use explosives, improvised explosive devices. so they're going to be really taking their time to go through the scene methodically and see if there's anything else that could harm people, and then they're going to want to forensically exploit whatever is left behind. they're going to

look into the explosive devices through my old office at the terrorist explosive device analytical center, which is part of the fbi laboratory system. and they're going to want to glean whatever they can from any explosives that are left behind to see if that sort of tradecraft has been used before. so they can kind of get a clue as to where this person may have learned how to make the devices. >> and, scott, you're saying priority number one is ensuring that the public is not in danger. now, we are now hearing that they are evacuating hotels in the area. and i want to bring in jason williams, the district attorney who represents the parish where this attack happened. jason, i know it's a busy time, so we appreciate you coming on. what can you tell us at this point? what's the latest here? >> so the evacuation of the hotels was earlier today, and it's largely due to finding that potential explosive device.

individuals were not allowed to go back into hotels, which meant, you know, at three, 3:00 in the morning, they just sort of stuck on the outside of crime scene tape with when everything else has been closed and shut down. it's an active crime scene. it's a blocks long crime scene. a number of the deceased are still still there. it's a very difficult moment. and as as your expert just said, the our first responders are methodically sort of working a grid to make sure that there is not potential for further harm. >> so, jason, where does this where does this go now? how do you ensure that there is not that potential, not only for this, but also the sugar bowl happening later today, the super bowl coming up, you know, lots of big events headed to new orleans. >> lots of big, lots of big events, lots of big events headed to new orleans. always a number of large events coming to

the city. we're a destination city. we punch above our weight. we're not a big city, but we host large crowds on a regular basis, and we have a strong strategy. and i want to be very clear about the first responders, state police, nopd responded expeditiously, neutralized. this individual certainly saved a lot of lives and a lot more injury with their quick work. but now the now is the rest of the case and that is investigating whether or not this person was completely acting alone. if anyone else knew, if he left any other devices to try to harm more people, and it's all still raw and still too fluid to have all of those answers at at this point. but the fbi is taking over the investigation. they're running the lead on it, and that is what they're working on now with our other partners.

>> and, jason, i want to bring in our senior investigative correspondent, aaron katersky, who is also following this investigation very closely. >> jason, i know you mentioned that one of the questions is whether the suspect was acting alone. have you any additional information about a possible second suspect? >> too soon to say right now. there was one suspect, but obviously with any investigation, you got to pull on every thread to find out what else is there and see what comes. and so our agencies are looking into any and everything now, but too soon to say any more about that. >> and in terms of other potential devices, we know at least one, maybe two were determined to be viable. any update on on numbers of potential devices and how that grid search is going? >> so all i can tell you right now is there are officers methodically walking the street in teams checking abandoned cars, license plates, looking

for unattended bags or containers, checking trash cans just to make sure that the public is safe, just to make sure that more explosive devices weren't left sooner or prior to this incident. >> all right, jason, thank you. i want to go to lebron joseph, a reporter from our station at wgno who is live a block from bourbon street. jason, what are you seeing there now? >> hey, diane, thanks so much. the corner of royal and canal is where we are. and yes, it is a block away from bourbon street, but it is a real contrast out here this morning, as many of these fans from the two universities that are here for the sugar bowl, as well as people that are staying downtown enjoying some of their time here in the city of new orleans. and if you take a look, yeah, folks are starting to get up and move around and all that, but that is a contrast to what is a major crime scene. coroner's wagon from the orleans parish

coroner's office. still out here, over my shoulder to the right. still many law enforcement vehicles out here as well. and yes, law enforcement officers walking through the french quarter largely shut down french quarter, certainly royal street from canal, i would say 6 or 7 blocks down and the same on bourbon street, about a good 6 or 7 blocks down that they have shut off, which is where the center of that crime scene took effect. being called a terrorist attack by everyone involved. now, there was a bit of a conflict earlier during the news conference with the mayor and the fbi assistant agent in charge, but everyone appears to be on the same page now, and that there is no question that they are considering this. it is being investigated that way, led by the fbi as a terrorist attack. so that's pretty much what we're seeing here. >> all right lebron joseph we

appreciate it lebron thank you. and i want to go back to jason william the district attorney there for the parish where this attack happened. jason, we know that local law enforcement and the fbi are both now investigating this as an act of terror. what more can you tell us on that front and the possibility that this was a larger operation? have you found any connections? are they asking those questions there? >> absolutely. asking those questions and looking for that information and that evidence i can't address how, how large or who or who may or may not have been involved. obviously, the prime suspect was neutralized by law enforcement very, very quickly. thank god. but those are those are the things that that they're actively looking into now. and hopefully we'll have answers sooner rather than later. but i've got to be circumspect with and not speculate as to anything else

right now. but this this is terror, whether it is domestic or otherwise, driving a vehicle, trying to hurt and kill as many people as you can in a short period of time, and then opening fire on officers who who were present is terror. no matter how you look at it, no matter where it was born. >> and jason aaron has another question for you. i just want to open you up to him for a second. >> thanks. sure. jason. anything on the vehicle? it appears to have been rented, but have you been able to trace anything on the on the vehicle itself? is that helping you in the investigation at all? >> that's certainly part of it, but i'm not at liberty to discuss that at this time. >> understood. and when you said before that that law enforcement is pulling on, on every thread, can you give us a sense of the scope? because this does seem to be a three pronged type attack with the vehicle ramming, the gunfire and the ieds. what's the

scope of the investigation? >> so, i mean, the scope is where was this individual before? who was he? who did he meet with before? obviously, any devices that he used where he spent his last night. these are all the threads that you have to pull on in an investigation like this. and you just have to follow where those things lead us. and like you said, the information about the vehicle, how it was acquired, when it was acquired, who paid for it. all of that will tell us more. and we just don't have those answers we appreciate you coming on with us. thank you. thank you guys.th and i want to go back to our chief justice correspondent, pierre thomas, with some new information. pierre, i understand you're learning some more about the identity of the suspect here. >> yes, diane, we're being told by sources a very senior source that authorities have a name that they're working with, but

it's a very common name. so they're being very careful because they want to make sure that they have identified the exact specific person, because that's how you can then build the background information you need to determine motive and why this attack happened when it did, and also affiliations and associates of this particular person. but that's a very important development in the case that there is a name that they're working with, trying to make sure that they have identified the precise person, that they can do all kinds of computer checks on fingerprint analysis on that kind of work is being done as we speak. they're hoping to have something firm on that in the coming hours. but they have a name that they're working on as the person who could be involved in this incident. >> and, erin, we heard former mayor marc morial saying that they need to go forward with the sugar bowl. that terror aims to stoke fear and change behaviors. there are conversations, though, right now with that in

discussion saying maybe they shouldn't go forward. what's the latest on that? >> i think it is going to go forward. they've had the discussions. they've been able to determine that the game can be played as scheduled, with the assistance of law enforcement officers from other neighboring agencies to help with the security. undoubtedly, there will be more security for spectators who are planning to go to the sugar bowl. what they are going to cancel? it seems some of the smaller events, smaller parties that would ordinarily be associated with an event like the sugar bowl on new year's day, there's often sponsorship parties and that kind of thing. some of those may end up being canceled, but the game itself, we're told, is going to go on with assistance from from other agencies. >> and in terms of the questions about how this happened, the barriers, were they up? were they not? where does that go? >> there's a real question as to whether the barriers that were supposed to be in place were actually in place. the there's local reporting that the barriers were in the process of being replaced when this

occurred to something maybe more permanent or substantial. you heard the police superintendent say the truck was able to veer around the barriers that were there. but we've also heard from eyewitnesses that nothing was really in place. now at that hour, did they come down? was the security as robust? did they feel they could bring them down and begin to replace them? that will be a frustrating question for police to grapple with going forward and what's going on now, to just try to secure the area and ensure that people are no longer in danger. you heard the district attorney tell us that they're doing a grid search, and i know that involves drones and cameras and just officers walking through the french quarter through a significant radius to make sure there are no other ieds or suspicious items that are there. and there have been a number of controlled detonations to render things safe. so they're keeping people away from the french quarter. i think it's an eight block radius around the vehicle ramming scene, and they're trying to make sure that

everything is secure and that there aren't additional devices that that were planted. >> and what about looking into additional attacks that may be planned or copycats? >> well, they have to account for the possibility that there is a second suspect. the main suspect, as you heard the district attorney say, is dead, shot by police after firing at them as they responded to the vehicle ramming. and as the district attorney told us, they're trying to determine whether he was acting alone or whether there were other individuals involved. as he said, they have to pull on every thread. >> and we are now hearing from president elect trump. he just released a statement on the attack, calling it an act of pure evil. he says our hearts are with all of the innocent victims and their loved ones, including the brave officers of the new orleans police department. he then indicated that his administration will support the city of new orleans with this investigation, and it is sure to be an intense one. so again, ten people dead in new orleans, dozens injured, including two

officers after the suspect rammed a pickup truck into a crowd on bourbon street. police say he then emerged from the vehicle and opened fire on officers, again, injuring two officers before the suspect was then killed. so an investigation underway as well into devices found on the scene. police and law enforcement, including the fbi leading the investigation, are trying to secure that area and ensure that it is safe. we will have much more coming up tonight on world news tonight and on abc news live as well. i'm diane macedo. thanks for watching. >> this has been a this is joey from the "bachelor" and "dancing with the stars." i want to welcome you to pasadena for a new year's tradition that starts right now. >> happy new year from the deck