Witnesses describe horrifying scene after deadly car attack on Bourbon Street in New Orleans: "Nothing we could do"
Witness described the horrifying scene after officials say a man intentionally drove a truck into a crowd on Bourbon Street in New Orleans early Wednesday, killing at least 14 people and injuring dozens more. The driver died after exchanging gunfire with police, the FBI said.
Witnesses told CBS News reporter Kati Weis that a white truck crashed into people at high speed, leaving a path of carnage and distraught onlookers.
Jim and Nicole Mowrer, visiting from Des Moines, Iowa, told CBS News they had watched the city's fireworks display and were enjoying the New Year's Day atmosphere in the French Quarter when they heard crashing noises coming from down the street. They said they then saw a white truck slam through a barricade "at a high rate of speed."
The Mowrers said they heard gunshots after the crashing noises and went to try to help people they found wounded, but realized the victims had died.
"They just were very clearly deceased and there's nothing we could do," said Jim Mowrer, who said he was an Iraq war veteran and that his goal was to provide first aid.
The Mowrers estimated that the truck hit people only about a block away from where they had been walking.
"We were in the middle of the road and managed to run off the road onto the sidewalk and into the doorway of a building for cover. We did hear gunfire, saw police running," Jim said.
"We stayed in the alcove until the gunfire stopped, came out into the street, and came across a lot of — several people who had been hit, (we) wanted to see what we could do to help," he said. "People we came across were unfortunately deceased."
The Mowrers said the victims they saw had injuries from the truck impact, and they did not see any apparent gunshot wounds. They said several victims were surrounded by emotional loved ones.
"It seemed like there were people who were, you know, people who are with those people or friends, and, obviously very, very distraught, because they seem to be people that they knew," Jim said.
They said they left the area once emergency responders started arriving.
"This man was trying to run over as many people as he possibly could," Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick said. "He was hellbent on creating the carnage and the damage that he did."
The suspect was struck by police fire and declared dead at the scene, the New Orleans Police Department said.
The FBI said it is investigating the attack "as an act of terrorism."
In a 2017 memo reviewed by CBS News, the city of New Orleans had acknowledged the risk of a mass casualty incident in the crowded, tourist-friendly French Quarter. The memo specifically references vehicle attacks in Nice, France, London, England, and New York City. The city said it planned to establish a camera and surveillance program, a centralized command center and more police patrols in the area.
