'Speechless' CNN host stunned by New Orleans attack witness stopped from helping victims
A witness to the horrific attack on New Year's Eve revelers in the early hours on New Orleans' Bourbon St. told an admittedly "speechless" Pamela Brown on CNN he and others were prevented from helping victims by police.
The attack by a man in an F-150 truck, who police say intentionally drove into the crowd leaving at least ten dead and three dozen injured, is currently being investigated by the FBI as a possible act of terrorism.
Speaking with CNN's Brown, Jimmy Cothran said he was acting as a designated driver for the crowd he was with when women ran into the bar they were in shouting about the attack and claiming the driver was driving 60 miles an hour as he went through the barricades.
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Cothran then described the carnage he witnessed, including bodies being thrown into the air, as the stunned CNN host blurted " I'm speechless."
According to Cothran, he attempted to help victims sprawled on the ground but was blocked by police and had to watch as no one showed up immediately.
"I mean, just the disfigurement and the bodies strewn –– something you can't unsee, you'll never forget," he told the host. "Directly at our feet was definitely a mother, twisted up, obviously deceased"
"We counted around eight bodies very quickly, right in our area," he continued. "One gentleman crushed, had tire tracks across his back, once they rolled him over, he had tire tracks on his front –– he was completely crushed. Another girl, young, small girl, was dancing when we were coming up the street, and she was just completely flat in the middle, dead center."
"Another woman just brutally run over, but still agonizing,"he added. "I'm certified in CPR and first responder training and they wouldn't let us help, they locked us all inside, which is understandable, but nobody else was helping, so that was even tougher."
"But just the fact that these people are somebody's people, and they're not going to be there this morning, it's rough," he stated.
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