Jazz musicians play in the street and restaurant waiters crowd passersby, but Samantha Petry, who works in a bar herself, is “not thrilled” to see the party resuming so quickly in New Orleans, the day after a deadly attack.
Known for its nightlife, the historic French Quarter, or “French Quarter”, is once again teeming with marching bands, curious tourists and customers going to restaurants, jazz clubs and other strip bars. But this time, the celebration is also dedicated to paying tribute to the 14 dead and around thirty injured after a pick-up plowed into the New Year’s Eve crowd on Bourbon Street.
At the entrance to this always crowded street, 14 yellow roses have been placed along a wall where an old man kneels in prayer. Crosses were erected nearby as an improvised memorial.
Wiping her tears, Samantha Petry came to leave a bouquet of flowers. Employee of a karaoke bar, the 38-year-old young woman, originally from California, would have preferred to have more time to mourn the dead.
“All this for the money,” she comments to AFP. “But at the same time, I have a job and I have to go,” especially in this tourist season for New Orleans, one of the most important with that of the famous Mardi Gras.
“But how will I be able to feel safe working here?” she asks.
Around her, almost nothing reminds us that Bourbon Street has just suffered carnage, except the strong police presence. Earlier Thursday, cleanup crews began removing all traces of the deadly New Year’s Eve attack.
– “Like a completely normal day” –
The ram vehicle which drove into the crowd during the night from Tuesday to Wednesday has been removed. Suspect Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a former US soldier, was killed in exchanges of fire with police. He claimed to have joined the jihadist group Islamic State, according to the FBI.
For President Joe Biden, the return to normal in the “French Quarter” shows the “tremendous spirit” of New Orleans. “We can’t undo it. We really can’t. And we see it today,” he said at a White House news conference.
And this state of mind seems to delight tourists. “We are not going to let terror ruin our weekend. We have been planning this trip for a long time,” says Ingrid Dolvin, a student in her twenties.
“Yesterday the tension was a little scary, but today it feels like a completely normal day on Bourbon Street,” she told AFP, holding a drink in her hand. frozen.
If she “of course thinks of all the victims and their families”, Ingrid Dolvin says she feels safe thanks to the significant police force deployed by the local and federal authorities.
– “Best thing to do” –
New Orleans native David Tripp shares this sentiment. For the city’s economic activity, “it was the best thing to do,” says this 62-year-old man who works in the Harley Davidson store on Bourbon Street and notably experienced Hurricane Katrina in 2005. “We don’t “We can’t let anything get us down,” he continues. “We are like that.”
Beyond tourists, the city also attracts American football supporters who come for the Sugar Bowl. This university sporting event brings together some 85,000 fans each year. The match which was to take place on January 1 was postponed for 24 hours.
Around the Caesars Superdome stadium, the strong police presence is also reminiscent of the New Year’s drama. And the heart is not necessarily there.
“It’s a bit like everyone is afraid of being too excited because of what happened,” Darleesia White, a Sugar Bowl fan since 2018, told AFP.
About to go through security, this 36-year-old teacher from Memphis says she is not worried, even if “the atmosphere is a little dead this year.”
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