Bourbon Street 'Terrorist Attack' Kills at Least 15

At least 15 people were killed and dozens injured in the early hours of New Year's Day after a vehicle plowed into a group of revelers on New Orleans' famous Bourbon Street before he was killed in a shootout with police.

"We do know that the city of New Orleans was impacted by a terrorist attack," Mayor LaToya Cantrell said, adding that she was in contact with the White House.

The FBI, which initially contradicted the mayor's terrorism assessment, later Wednesday reported that the supect was killed and said the incident was being probed as an "act of terrorism."

"This morning, an individual drove a car into a crowd of people on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, killing a number of people and injuring dozens of others. The subject then engaged with local law enforcement and is now deceased. The FBI is the lead investigative agency, and we are working with our partners to investigate this as an act of terrorism," the FBI said in a statement.

Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick said the driver was a man "hell-bent on creating carnage."

Improvised explosive devices also were found near the scene, and the FBI was working to confirm if the weapons are viable, ABC News' Beatrice Peterson reported on X.

The incident occurred at about 3:15 a.m. local time, reports New Orleans ABC affiliate WGNO, just hours before the scheduled start of the Allstate Sugar Bowl, which draws in thousands of fans from around the United States.

In addition to the Sugar Bowl, crowds were gathered in the city for an open-air concert, the New Year's Eve countdown, and other events on and around Bourbon Street, according to the New Orleans website.

Some eyewitnesses and media reports said the driver got out of the vehicle with a weapon and opened fire on the crowd.

The attack was "very intentional," said Kirkpatrick.

"It did involve a man driving a pickup truck down Bourbon Street at a very fast pace, and it was very intentional behavior," she said. "This man was trying to run over as many people as he possibly could."

Kirkpatrick said the driver fired shots from the vehicle after crashing it, wounding two police officers, who were reportedly in stable condition.

Kirkpatrick added that the crash was "not a DUI situation."

"This was more complex and more serious based on the information we have right now," she said.

Most of those injured by the vehicle were locals, not visitors to the city, said Kirkpatrick.

"We have information to a certain degree of the demographics of those who are in the hospital right now," she said. "We do not know at this point how many could be tourists versus locals, but from the information I have right now, it seems the majority are locals."

One witness told WWL-TV that she only escaped "by the grace of God" after she saw the vehicle strike the crowd and started running. She also said that several police officers opened fire at the vehicle to try to stop the driver.

Other witnesses told CBS News that they saw the truck crash into the crowd at high speed before the driver got out of the vehicle and started firing a weapon. They said police returned fire on the suspect.

CBS News reporter Kati Weis said she saw multiple people on the ground who were being treated for injuries.

A New Orleans Police Department spokesperson said that "initial reports show a car may have plowed into a group of people. Injuries are unknown but there are reported fatalities."

Eyewitnesses to the incident told CNN that they saw dead and injured people and heard gunshots being fired.

"All I seen was a truck slamming into everyone on the left side of Bourbon sidewalk," Kevin Garcia, 22, said. "A body came flying at me."

Whit Davis, 22, said she was at a Bourbon Street nightclub when the truck hit the crowd.

"Everyone started yelling and screaming and running to the back, and then we basically went into lockdown for a little bit and then it calmed down but they wouldn't let us leave," she said.

Louisiana GOP Gov. Jeff Landry, posting on X, urged all those near the scene to "avoid the area."

"A horrific act of violence took place on Bourbon Street earlier this morning," he said. "Please join Sharon and I in praying for all the victims and first responders on [the] scene."

Tuesday, the New Orleans Police Department said they expected the city to be busy and that the department would be staffed at 100% while pulling in another 300 officers, reports NBC News.

Police also said they were deploying drones around New Orleans' French Quarter throughout the New Year's Eve festivities and the events around the Sugar Bowl.