horror on the streets of new orleans. a speeding truck rams through bourbon street, killing at least 15 people and injuring dozens more. federal authorities calling the attack a deliberate act of terror as new etails about the suspect come to light. we have team coverage live in new orleans with the latest from

the investigation, plus the new comments from president biden overnight. and the growing questions about how he was able to get the truck onto the crowded street. why security barriers failed to stop the driver, and the race to secure the city ahead of the sugar bowl this afternoon which was delayed after the attack. and new overnight in the deadly cybertruck inferno at the trump hotel in vegas. the possible connection between that suspect and the new orleans suspect. all that and more on this busy thursday, january 2nd. "early today" starts right now. ♪ ♪ glad you're with me this morning. i'm frances rivera. we begin today with a deadly new year's day attack in new orleans. at least 15 people are dead and 30 injured after police say a u.s. army veteran from texas allegedly drove a pickup truck into a crowd on bourbon street. the fbi now asking for the public's help as they don't

believe the shooter is solely responsible for the attack. a man was seen surrendering to authorities at the suspect's home in houston before that property was searched. nbc's tom llamas has the latest. >> reporter: in the opening hours of the new year, terror on the streets of new orleans. cell phone video capturing the scene of bodies sprawled out. >> we're dealing with ems right now. we're working in a triage area. >> reporr: video courtesy of earth cam showing police racing toward the carnage where a driver plowed his pickup truck into crowds in the historic french quarter. you can see the truck getting around a police cruiser, racing through the street packed with revelers, killing as many as 15 and injuring dozens of others. >> he was hell bent on creating the carnage and damage that he did. >> reporter: police say the

suspect started his attack at 3:15 a.m. local, first using his car as a weapon, mowing people down at high speed on the three blocks between canal and conti streets before crashing into a crane. he died in a shootout with police. this video capturing the sound of gunshots. two police officers were shot and injured. >> the guy in the pickup truck just punched the gas, and mowed over the barricade and hit a pedi cab passenger. and there were just bodies and screams. i mean, you can't, you can't unthink about, you know, unhear that. it was chaos. and very, very scary. >> reporter: the fbi, the lead agency on the investigation, identified the suspect as 42-year-old shamsud-din jabbar, a u.s. citizen from texas, and they're still hunting additional potential co-conspirators. >> we do not believe jabbar was

solely responsible. >> reporter: the fbi says jabbar was driving a rented ford pickup truck. >> an isis flag was located on the trailer hitch of the vehicle, and the fbi is working to determine the subject's potential associations and affiliations with terrorist organizations. >> reporter:he fbi says also found in the truck, weapons and an improvised explosive device, plus two ieds found elsewhere in the french quarter were rendered safe. >> after hitting the crowd, he exited the vehicle and fired upon local law enforcement. law enforcement returned fire, and the subject was pronounced deceased at the scene. >> reporter: according to texas records, jabbar had two misdemeanor charges in his past. one for theft and the other for driving with an invalid license. in a youtube video posted four years ago, jabbar identifies himself as a realtor and texas property manager. >> i'm born and raised in beaumont, texas and now live in houston. >> reporter: in the video he says he spent ten years in the military as a human resources and i.t. specialist. the u.s. army confirmed he

served in the regular army and then the army reserves, he ended his service at the rank of staff sergeant. president biden saying the fbi has been briefing him on the killer. >> mere hours before the attack, he posted videos on social media indicating that he was inspired by isis, especially in the desire to kill. desire to kill. >> reporter: in new orleans, bourbon street now an active crime scene with authorities searching for answers. >> we need the public's help. we are asking if anybody has any interactions with shamsud-din jabbar in the last 72 hours that you contact us. the fbi is asking the public's help. >> and our thanks to tom for that report. let's turn now to washington, d.c. and more on the federal response to this deadly attack. nbc's chris pollone is following the white house reaction. good morning, chris. >> reporter: president biden is urging people not to jump to any

conclusions in this incident. he says he will keep the country fully informed. the president says he has directed his team to make sure every resource is made available to federal and local law enforcement with the fbi taking the lead on this investigation. >> the fbi is leading the investigation to determine what happened, why it happened, whether there was any continuing threat t to public safety. new orleans is a place unlike any other place in the world, a city full of charm and joy. so many people around the world love new orleans. because of its history. its culture, and above all its people. so i know while this person committed a terrible assault on the city, the city of new orleans will never, never, never be defeated. >> reporter: the president also acknowledged the deadly cybertruck explosion that happened outside a trump hotel in las vegas. he said authorities are looking for any possible link to the new orleans attack but says so far

there is nothing to report. in april, fbi director christopher wray warned congress that the threat of domestic terrorism was on the rise across the united states and this attack in new orleans comes just before major security events happen in d.c. this month with the january 6 anniversary, the funeral for former president jimmy carter and the inauguration of donald trump. president-elect trump said that his administration wilfully support new orleans as they investigate and recover, frances. >> okay. chris, thank you. now to the sold-out college football game in new orleans scheduled for last night. it was moved to this afternoon in the wake of the deadly bourbon street attack. notre dame and the university of georgia will now face off in the sugar bowl at 3:00 p.m. local time. the allstate sugar bowl ceo saying the move was in the best interest of public safety and will allow additional security resources to be put in place. our jesse kirsch has more on the city's physical security measures. >> reporter: hours after that

bloody attack on bourbon street, growing questions about the physical barriers used to secure the area, devices known as bollards, typically short stainless steel posts used in cities and towns to help control crowds and vehicles. but the bollards weren't there. the system was in the midst of repairs. >> bollards were not up, because they are near completion. with the expectation of being completed, of course, by super bowl. >> reporter: the game-set to be played in new orleans next month. the superintendent of police says other barriers like police vehicles and officers were in place to secure bourbon street on new year's eve, but video shows how the attacker drove right around a patrol car. >> so we did, indeed, have a plan, but the terrorist defeated it. >> anything that's currently in the midst of being repaired had a backup replacement? >> we had vehicles, and officers were there where all those

bollards have been. we had that. we knew. so we did have it. and, like i said, in this particular case, the terrorist just went all the way around up onto the sidewalk. >> reporter: was someone getting up on a sidewalk considered impossible? or nearly impossible? or was this not something you expected you would have to account for? >> of course it wasn't something we expected to account for. >> reporter: new orleans the latest deadly ramming attack following the german christmas attack. and the one in nice, france in 2016. jose was visiting new orleans and left the area just before the attack. >> the metal barriers were not up. just the standard plastic ones. there were a lot of police there, but the metal barricades were not up. >> reporter: city website showing what the new bollards may look like, as the project is set to be completed next month. but a nationally-televised playoff game is supposed to be

played here. helena moreno says the city is ready. you think the city can host a football game safely? >> so many resources are being deployed that no doubt about it, we will host a safe game tomorr. additional intelligence, you name it. it's all happening. >> our thanks to jesse for that report. another possible act of terrorism is being investigated in las vegas. a tesla cybertruck exploding outside the trump international hotel. police say the driver was killed and several other people were injured. officials briefed the public about explosives found inside. >> gasoline canisters. camp fuel canisters and large firework mortars. >> investigators have not found a link to isis in this case. but law enforcement officials confirmed the cybertruck was rented from the same company as the vehicle used in the new

orleans attack. two law enforcement sources tell nbc news that the suspect in this explosion had previous military experience and officials are looking into a possible connection to the bourbon street suspect but t th investigation is still unfolding. in ohio, a fugitive killed in a shootout last month has been identified as a suspect in a decades-old unsolved murder of a 18-year-old woman. the mansfield police department says new dna evidence established proof, quote, beyond a reasonable doubt that james van ness was responsible for the 1981 murder of debra miller. she was beaten with an oven grate inside her apartment. he lived in the unit above miller. he was questioned but never considered a suspect until 2021 when they reopened the case. in hawaii, at least three

women were killed and 20 hospitalized, including children. authorities arrived at a gruesome scene after a massive explosion caused by what appears to be illegal fireworks. >> we're angry, frustrated and deeply saddened at this unnecessary loss of life and suffering. a tragic way to start off the new year. what should have been a night of joy and celebration has instead become one of sorrow and heartbreak for our community. >> officials in hawaii now promising tougher penalties for illegal fireworks. the year is off to a frigid start across much of the country. nbc meteorologist and angie lan is here. >> we've got one tiny little system that's going to bring snow through the midwest and work its way east, eventually being offshore by tomorrow.

we will still be dealing with gusty winds. notice 40, 50 mile-per-hour winds will be possible. this leaving us with power outages, maybe downed trees and tree limbs. next thing we'll be watching into the weekend, this low is going to cross parts of the plains. a massive rain, sn, ice.ow tures south. 60 degrees for shreveport. upper 50s in jackson. little rock tops out at 50 degrees with mostly sunny conditions today. and that's a look at your forecast, frances, back to you. coming up, popeye says ahoy to the public domain. and texas narrowly escapes in an overtime thriller for the ages. we're back in 60 seconds with the highlights. n 60 seconds w w the highlights.

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we're back now with a blowout in the college football playoffs. ohio state got their revenge and then some for that regular-season loss to number one ranked oregon. >> over to the right guard, and luke montgomery played in that tennessee game in at left guard. >> down the middle! touchdown! buckeyes on fire! >> on fire is right. the buckeyes never took their foot off the gas, racking up 34 points before the half. the ducks finally got on board at the end of the second quarter but already looked cooked. ohio state's jeremiah smith reeled in three long touchdown passes from will howard. and the buckeyes roll to a 41-21 win in the rose bowl. ohio state advances to face texas in the semi-finals after the long horns escaped arizona state in overtime. it was all horns with 77 yards

in their first two plays for a quick touchdown and a punt return by silas bolden. then here comes cam scatterboo, racking up three touchdowns leading the rally to tie it up. long horns doink what would have been a game-winning field goal to send it into ot where it looked all but over. >> texas must convert fourth and 13. >> it's a blitz look here. trying to audible. >> to stay alive. can they hook'em? touchdown! matthew golden! >> an interception by texas safety seals an instant classic. horns win 39-31. this afternoon, georgia and notre dame will face off in the sugar bowl, delayed after yesterday's tragic attack in new orleans. still to come, the iconic

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(♪♪) skincare can start in the laundry room. that's why i always recommend all free clear for sensitive skin. it's free of dyes and perfumes. it's a key part of my self-care routine. and is gentle for my skin, and her's too. for an effective clean that's gentle on skin, all you need is all free clear. ♪ ♪ "early today" is back now with more on the deadly attack on bourbon street that took 15 lives and injured dozens more. jay gray joins me live from new orleans. officials are calling this an act of terror. what more do we know about the suspect? >> reporter: yeah, and frances,

we know that it's a u.s. army veteran, spent a decade in the army, including a deployment to afghanistan, we know even at this hour, it would normally be packed with revelers, it is quite and tense and searching for answers. chaos in the french quarter. this truck darting around a police vehicle, then accelerating into a crowd on bourbon street. >> it was pandemonium. it was emergency vehicles everywhere. police were everywhere. bodies, folks were just running through the streets. >> reporter: at least 15 killed, dozens injured in a suspected terror attack. >> an isis flag was located on the trailer hitch of the vehicle, weapons and potential improvised explosive devices, ieds, were located in the suspect's vehicle. >> reporter: the suspect

identified as shamsud-din jabbar. after crashing into a crane, jabbar apparently jumping from the vehicle. and after wounding two officers, killed in a shootout with police. agents now indicating he likely had help carrying out the attack. >> we do not believe jabbar was solely responsible. we are aggressively running down every lead, including those of his known associates. >> reporter: law enforcement teams searching the suspect's home in houston and the scene at an overnight fire at a new orleans airbnb where it's believed some of the devices may have been assembled. two additional ieds, located in the french quarter were rendered safe. the area still locked down as the investigation continues. investigators believe this area of the french quarter may be locked down for as many as two more days as they continue that investigation. frances? >> jay gray for us.

thank you. and of course, nbc will have continuing coverage on this terror attack on bourbon street. throughout the morning, here on nbc and also on "today." we thank you so much for being with us here for "early today." i'm frances rivera. have a good one. have a good one.

horror in the streets of new orleans. a speeding truck rams through bourbon street, killing at least 15 people and injuring dozens more. federal authorities calling the act a deliberate act of terror, as new details about the suspect come to light.