The death toll in a New Year's Day terror attack in New Orleans has risen to at least 15, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Authorities previously said at least 10 people were killed in a vehicle-ramming attack at around 3:15 a.m. Wednesday that left more than 30 others injured.
The attack also led to a one-day postponement of the Sugar Bowl, a College Football Playoff game between Notre Dame and Georgia that has attracted tens of thousands of fans to the city.
New Orleans coroner Dr. Dwight McKenna said it will take several days to conduct autopsies, with victims' names expected to be released following next-of-kin notification.
“This is not just an act of terrorism. This is evil,” New Orleans Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick said.
Here's what we know so far:
What happened?
A driver in a pickup truck drove onto a sidewalk, going around a police car that was positioned to block vehicular traffic and protect Bourbon Street revelers, authorities said. A barrier system designed to prevent vehicle attacks was undergoing repairs in preparation for the Super Bowl, which is being played in the city in February.
Police killed the driver after he exited the vehicle and opened fire on responding officers, police said. Three officers returned fire. Two were shot and are in stable condition, police said. They were in addition to 33 people injured in the vehicle attack.
Investigators recovered a handgun and AR-style rifle after the shootout, a law enforcement official said. The official was not authorized to discuss details of the investigation publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
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Investigators are trying to determine if the driver was firing it into the crowd with a rifle while running people over, officials briefed on the investigation told NBC News.
Guns and pipe bombs were also found in the vehicle, according to a Louisiana State Police intelligence bulletin obtained by The Associated Press. The devices, which were concealed within coolers, were wired for remote detonation, the bulletin said, and a corresponding remote control was discovered inside the vehicle.
The FBI said other potential explosive devices were also located in the French Quarter.
The driver “defeated” safety measures that were in place to protect pedestrians, Kirkpatrick said, and was “hell-bent on creating the carnage and the damage that he did.”
“It was very intentional behavior. This man was trying to run over as many people as he could,” Kirkpatrick said.
Fans in town for the Sugar Bowl were left shaken by the aftermath of the attack Wednesday morning.
Among the visitors was the mayor of Hammond, Indiana, who said he was staying at a hotel off of Bourbon Street when the attack unfolded.
“The French Quarter you can’t even walk on Bourbon Street right now, you can’t get within a block of it. There’s FBI agents, there’s Louisiana State Troopers everywhere,” Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. said.
Illinois State Representative Kam Buckner, who previously worked for former New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu, pointed to the lack of safety bollards that are typically present along the pedestrian-heavy area.
“We undertook a $40 million public safety infrastructure project where we put bollards and retractable gates up on Bourbon Street so that this type of thing does not happen, and unfortunately from this situation, I can tell those devices were not working because they were under maintenance getting ready for the coming Super Bowl,” Buckner said.
Who was the driver?
The FBI identified the driver as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, 42, a U.S. citizen and Army veteran from Texas, and said it is working to determine Jabbar's potential associations and affiliations with terrorist organizations.
What has the investigation uncovered so far?
The FBI is investigating the attack as an act of terrorism and said it does not believe the driver acted alone. An Islamic State group flag was found on the vehicle's trailer hitch, the FBI said.
Investigators have reviewed video showing three men and a woman placing an improvised explosive device in connection with the car attack. That’s according to a Louisiana State Police bulletin obtained by The Associated Press.
The revelation could help explain why officials at a Wednesday news conference said that they were aggressively hunting for additional suspects and did not believe the driver of the pickup truck acted alone.
“We do not believe that Jabbar was solely responsible," Alethea Duncan, an assistant special agent in charge of the FBI’s New Orleans field office, said at a news conference, adding that the department was "aggressively running down every lead."
However, a senior law enforcement official told NBC News that the individuals who were initially suspected of planting explosive devices have now been ruled out as suspects.
According to the official, the possibility that others planted the explosive devices was the basis for believing Jabbar did not act alone, though the FBI is continuing to investigate the possibility of multiple suspects being involved in the attack.
The pickup truck used in the attack was rented via Turo, an app that connects drivers, known as “guests,” with vehicle owners, known as “hosts,” according to Steve Webb, the company’s vice president of communications.
“We are heartbroken to learn that one of our host’s vehicles was involved in this awful incident,” Webb said in an email. “We are actively partnering with the FBI. We are not currently aware of anything in this guest’s background that would have identified him as a trust and safety threat to us at the time of the reservation.”
Officials are asking for the public's help in the investigation.
"We’re asking if anybody has any interactions with Shamsud Din Jabbar in the last 72 hours that you contact us," Duncan said. "The FBI is asking the public’s help. We’re asking anyone who has information, video or pictures to provide it to the FBI.”
Multiple sources familiar with the matter confirmed to NBC News that the image below is Jabbar:
What to know about the victims
Officials confirmed at least 10 people were killed in the attack, but noted some of the dozens more injured were also in very critical condition.
A senior law enforcement official briefed on the investigation told NBC News the death toll had risen to as many as 15 Wednesday afternoon, but New Orleans police said they could not confirm that number.
NOLA Ready, the city's emergency preparedness department, said the injured had been taken to five local hospitals.
University of Georgia President Jere Morehead said a student was critically injured in the attack and is receiving medical treatment.
Further details on those killed or injured weren't immediately released.
