New Orleans ramps up security as Mardi Gras season begins and Super Bowl approaches, but concerns and questions remain

As New Orleans prepares to kick off its extravagant Carnival season this week, the city is asking for federal help in ensuring there is not a repeat of the horrific truck-ramming that killed 14 people early on New Year’s Day.

As New Orleans prepares to kick off its extravagant Carnival season this week, the city is asking for federal help in ensuring there is not a repeat of the horrific truck-ramming that killed 14 people early on New Year’s Day. President Joe Biden is set to visit on Monday and is expected to hear directly from Mayor LaToya Cantrell and other city officials on what Washington can do, including potentially raising the federal security level for its world-famous Carnival, also called Mardi Gras. The New Year’s attack came during a busy season for New Orleans; at the time, revelers were still celebrating on the raucous Bourbon Street, with the Allstate Sugar Bowl scheduled later that day, though it was later postponed. The city had also been gearing up for Carnival, with weeks of parades, performances and parties starting Monday. And in February, the crown jewel of American sports: Super Bowl LIX. Each event is expected to draw huge numbers of visitors from across the country. Local businesses including restaurants and hotels are preparing for the influx of tourists with special deals and events. But it also poses a security challenge that authorities are now under pressure to address, facing heightened scrutiny as questions swirl about how the attack was carried out and whether it could have been prevented. Shortly after the attack, Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry declared a state of emergency, writing in the decree that it would allow New Orleans to deploy additional resources as it prepares to see “hundreds of thousands of visitors in the weeks leading up to the Super Bowl and Mardi Gras.”