NewsTracker Answers for week of Jan. 06, 2025

Q: Early New Year’s Day a Texas man drove a truck through a crowd of revelers on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, Louisiana, killing at least 14 people and injuring another 30. The driver was then killed in a shoot-out with police. Where is Louisiana?

Circle the area on this map

Q: Before the attack, the driver proclaimed his support for what terrorist group?

A. Atomwaffen Division

B. Islamic State (ISIS)

Ku Klux Klan

D. National Liberation Army

B. Shamsud-Din Jabbar was born and raised in Texas and had converted from Christianity to Islam. He served in the U.S. Army, including a year in Afghanistan. He apparently became a radicalized supporter of ISIS based in the Mideast after suffering a series of personal and financial troubles.

Q: Police believe Jabbar acted alone but may have been planning his terror attack for more than six weeks. The attack took place before which event that draws thousands of visitors to New Orleans?

A. Mardi Gras

B. Sugar Bow

C. Super Bowl

D. All of the above

D. The Sugar Bowl college football game had been scheduled for New Year’s Day but was postponed to the following day. This week, the first parades were planned in the Carnival season leading to Mardi Gras on March 4. The National Football League’s Super Bowl championship is scheduled for Feb. 9.

Q: New Orleans is 307 years old, the largest city in Louisiana and a major U.S port. But, tourism is a major industry in the Crescent City. How much did tourists spend in New Orleans in 2023?

A. $4.5 billion

B. $6.7 billion

C. $8.7 billion

D. $10.5 billion

C. Visitors spent more than $8.7 billion in 2023, when New Orleans had 17.8 million domestic visitors. Tourism generates nearly 40% of New Orleans’ operating budget and supports 75,000 jobs.

Q: Suspected bomb-making materials were found in Jabbar’s home in Houston. Texas is ...

A. West of Louisiana

B. North of Louisiana

C. East of Louisiana

D. South of Louisiana

A. Louisiana borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, Mississippi to the east, and the Gulf of Mexico to the south. Many New Orleans residents displaced by Hurricane Katrina in 2005 took refuge in Houston, which is 348 miles west of New Orleans.