In fact, the device which usually protects this busy artery located in the heart of the “Vieux Carré”, the famous French quarter, was not operational, the authorities recognized during a press conference on Wednesday evening (Thursday morning in Switzerland ). According to New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell, the steel bollards that usually prevent cars from entering the area were not in place at the time of the attack.
Repair work to improve safety
Installed in 2017 at various intersections in the French Quarter, the retractable and adjustable bollards are being replaced, notes the AP agency. Started on November 18, this work aims to remove all the old terminals and install new stainless steel ones, as mentioned on the city website.
Some of the old bollards “had proven to be unreliable and were no longer operational,” the city said in a statement Wednesday afternoon, according to AP. Ironically, this work must be completed within a few weeks, in order to guarantee maximum security of the premises during the Super Bowl that the city will host in February.
The city specifies in its press release that it has in the meantime installed temporary barriers accompanied by a police force, in order to secure the streets and filter vehicle access. A system that was also reinforced for New Year’s Eve, according to Anne Kirkpatrick, director of the New Orleans police, during the press conference on Wednesday evening.
She declared that the city had notably deployed more than 300 agents. In an interview given to Times-Picayune earlier this week, she specified that these agents would be supported by 60 members of the Louisiana State Police. “We actually had a plan, but the terrorist foiled it” by passing through the sidewalk to get around a strategically parked police vehicle, according to statements from Anne Kirkpatrick relayed by the Washington Post and the New York Times.
Zero risk does not exist
The fact that the city decided to install new, more solid terminals demonstrates that it had anticipated this type of attack. In fact, since the series of vehicle-ramming attacks 7-8 years ago, including the particularly deadly ones in Nice on July 14, 2016, in Berlin in December of the same year and in Barcelona in August 2017, the cities of around the world have strengthened their security measures around busy areas.
While posts or concrete blocks can be an effective tool to prevent possible attackers from charging into the crowd, zero risk does not exist. The recent attack in Magdeburg, Germany, demonstrates that completely preventing this type of event is a challenge. The perpetrator managed to enter the secure market enclosure via the access provided for emergency vehicles.
There is no single answer to avoid this type of attack, recalls the Washington Post. It is up to the authorities to determine which public spaces must have enhanced security based on their capacity to bring together crowds.
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry said during Wednesday’s news conference that a lasting solution is being developed. Remember that in addition to the Super Bowl in February, New Orleans is preparing to welcome this Thursday (Friday in Switzerland) nearly 80,000 people during the Sugar Bowl, the quarterfinals of the play-offs of the university football season American, and the Mardi Gras parade, the carnival in March.
