Car crashes into crowd: At least ten dead
By Juliane Rodust
New Orleans (USA) - At least ten people have died in an incident involving a vehicle in the popular French Quarter nightlife district in New Orleans, according to the city.
The accident occurred at around 3.15 a.m. (local time) on New Year's Eve on Canal and Bourbon Streets.
"A car drove into a large crowd of people," explained the administration.
30 other people are said to have been taken to hospital with injuries following the accident in the US state of Louisiana. A police officer is also said to have been injured.
The US broadcaster CBS News reported that, according to eyewitnesses, it was a large car that drove into the crowd at high speed on Bourbon Street.
The driver then allegedly got out and fired a gun, to which the police responded with shots. So far there is no information on the driver or his whereabouts.
Trendy neighborhood in New Orleans closed, hundreds of rescue workers on site
Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry (54) called what happened at the X news service a "horrific act of violence". "Please join Sharon and me in praying for all the victims and first responders on the scene," he wrote, calling on people to avoid the area where the crime took place.
Rescue workers were on the scene with a massive contingent. According to a reporter from WWLTV, the police evacuated restaurants and bars on Bourbon Street and also cordoned off the neighborhood's main street.
It is not yet known what was behind the attack and whether it was possibly an attack. Just two weeks ago, a similar attack took place in Magdeburg: A 50-year-old man had raced through the Christmas market in an SUV , killing five people and injuring more than 200 .