As the host city for Super Bowl LIX, New Orleans expects to welcome more than 100,000 visitors for the Feb. 9 game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles. At least a million more people will be celebrating Mardi Gras, the city’s biggest tourist draw annually, less than a month later.
But a terrorist attack on New Year’s Day, which killed 14 people and injured dozens more on the tourist-filled thoroughfare of Bourbon Street, has cast a pall over the city.
Since then, local, state and federal officials have sought to reassure visitors regarding the city’s safety for the Super Bowl and Mardi Gras. New or expanded security efforts are planned, including aerial surveillance and assigning more plainclothes officers. Additionally, the Department of Homeland Security, the federal agency responsible for public security, including antiterrorism and disaster prevention, upgraded its security assessment of the city’s Mardi Gras parades to its highest rating, which allows for additional funding and resources to be supplied. The Super Bowl was already assessed at its highest level.
“We are doing everything we can to address the gaps that the New Orleans Police Department and the Louisiana State Police might have,” said Eric DeLaune, a special agent with D.H.S.’s Homeland Security Investigations who is leading the federal coordination for Super Bowl and Mardi Gras.
According to the Homeland Security Investigations office, security efforts for both events will include special agents stationed on rooftops and in the crowds, SWAT team members on standby, surveillance drones, extra security cameras around the city, armored vehicles placed at key points, K-9 officers with bomb-sniffing dogs, and patrols along the Mississippi River. Intelligence analysts will also be working to identify potential threats.
During the Super Bowl and its related events, agents will concentrate on the neighborhoods near Caesars Superdome: the Warehouse District and the French Quarter. During Mardi Gras, the efforts will be more widespread across the city.
The Homeland Security Investigations office and the city of New Orleans declined to provide specific numbers of law enforcement officers who will be on duty between local, state and national agencies, but in a statement the city said that the New Orleans Police Department “will be staffed at 100 percent.”
Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick of the New Orleans Police Department said at a Jan. 10 news conference that the local police force will have “all hands on deck” during the Super Bowl and, combined with state and federal entities, there will be “hundreds and hundreds of officers.”
“With absolutely all the law enforcement cops you’re going to see out there for Super Bowl, you’re going to think you’re in a sea of blue,” the superintendent said.
In addition to foot patrols, the city is installing a new bollard system and temporary archers — heavy-duty metal barricades — to block popular roadways, including Bourbon Street, from vehicle traffic. Bourbon Street was where a man driving a truck rammed into dozens of revelers early New Year’s Day after evading a parked police cruiser. Bollards had been installed in 2017, but some were malfunctioning and under repair. The new work on bollards is expected to continue through February.
Earlier this month, the state began removing homeless encampments near the Superdome and the French Quarter, a costly, controversial effort undertaken before the influx of visitors arrives.
Super Bowl security
Super Bowl host stadiums have a security perimeter three times the size of a regular-season game, and the Superdome will be protected by a 300-foot perimeter, according to Tim Schlittner, a National Football League spokesman. He added that multiple layers of security will include entry checkpoints and fences around the stadium.
The N.F.L.’s secure areas will include the Superdome, the Super Bowl Experience at New Orleans’ convention center — described by the N.F.L. as a “football theme park” — and other smaller, league-sanctioned events.
The NFL’s clear bag policy will be in effect: Only bags that are made of clear plastic, vinyl or PVC and do not exceed 12 inches by 6 inches by 12 inches will be permitted, although fans are encouraged to not bring any bags at all. Online, a list of prohibited items includes banners, signs, food and beverages, selfie sticks and noisemakers.
For Mardi Gras, a new safety designation
Yet Mardi Gras is a sprawling series of events across multiple neighborhoods over the course of several weeks. Its nature may put more pressure on the city’s security apparatus.
Mr. DeLaune said upgrading Mardi Gras this year to a SEAR 1 event “gives us an opportunity to operate at a higher level and to make sure to give the community those resources they need.”
Individual precautions visitors can take
Historically, New Orleans has had a reputation for being a city that struggles with crime; but last year, violent crime in the city fell to its lowest levels since 2019.
Nevertheless, visitors are advised to take the same precautions as with traveling to other urban areas: watch out for pickpockets, don’t walk alone at night, stay aware of your surroundings, have your I.D. on you and keep your beverage in sight.
“Just like in any other city, you have to have your head on a swivel and be paying attention,” said Mr. DeLaune. “Are you standing in a place where you’re exposed to passing traffic? Are you standing in a place that’s not well-lit?” He also recommended making sure your cellphone is charged.
It would be wise to allow for extra time to get through the enhanced security that visitors will now experience. Staying with a group is also a good idea, as is making a plan before you head out and sharing that plan with others.
For friends and family to track your whereabouts, use a location-sharing service like Life360, “Find My” on iPhone or “Personal Safety” on Android or Google Maps.
“Let people know where you’re going, and tell someone who’s not there where you’re going and what your plan is,” said Seth Krummrich, vice president of client risk management for the security firm Global Guardian and a retired Army colonel who used to live in New Orleans.
Mr. Krummrich also recommends having two or three exit strategies in mind — “if anything happens, I’m going this way” — and setting up a meeting place and time, in case someone in your group gets lost or loses their cellphone.
As always, drive sober and defensively. “After 11 p.m. in New Orleans, I personally have to assume that a quarter of the drivers out there are inebriated,” he said.
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