The Caesars Superdome, the venue for the college football Sugar Bowl between Notre Dame and Georgia, remains on lockdown in response to the New Year’s Day Bourbon Street attack. The Fighting Irish released a statement saying they’re still trying to gather facts about the event after the game scheduled for Wednesday night at 8:45 p.m. was postponed.
FBI, law enforcement, Sugar Bowl officials, and team representatives were reported to have gathered to come up with a forward-thinking plan as players from both teams were expected to follow through with the game under safety protocols of avoiding Bourbon Street. The Caesars Superdome is approximately 1.3 miles away from the area of the tragedy.
“We are aware of the incident this morning in New Orleans and are working with law enforcement and others to determine the full scope and impact of the tragedy,” read the Notre Dame statement. “The public is urged to avoid Bourbon Street north from Canal to Dumaine Streets and also east from Royal Street to Dauphine Street until further notice as the investigation is ongoing.”
The Sugar Bowl’s Superdome went on lockdown after a tragic incident where a truck rammed into New Year’s partygoers, resulting in 10 fatalities and over 30 injuries. Officials from the Sugar Bowl and Sun Belt Conference, who have offices within the Superdome, were advised not to report to work until told otherwise.
Despite the closeness of the event, there were initially no signs that the game between Georgia and Notre Dame would be postponed. Confirmation was also given from authorities to ensure that the venue would be safe to proceed with as planned at the 70,000-seat venue.
Georgia and Notre Dame’s football teams checked into downtown hotels just blocks away from the scene, preparing for their Sugar Bowl matchup. The Sugar Bowl has seen historical attendance figures of over 60,000 dating back to 2021, following the global pandemic.
“The Sugar Bowl Committee is devastated by the terrible events from early this morning,” expressed Sugar Bowl CEO Jeff Hundley. “We are in ongoing discussions with authorities on the local, state, and federal levels and will communicate further details as they become available.”
New Orleans City Council President Helena Moreno initially suggested that the game would go on and addressed concerns on WDSU-TV. Moreno said, “What you’ll see today for the Sugar Bowl, which will go on, is that the perimeter for security around the Superdome has been extended to be a larger zone.” She assured heightened vigilance, adding, “So expect obviously extra security. There are more police officers who are coming in.”
Along with the Sugar Bowl, the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl also commenced on New Year’s Day. Atlanta Police acted quickly to prepare and notify Mercedes-Benz Stadium goers with enhanced security in retaliation to the events.
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