Latest news with #CathyLanier
NBC News
06-02-2025
- Business
- NBC News
New Orleans prepares for Super Bowl 59, its biggest weekend of the year
New Orleans is preparing for an estimated 125,000 visitors and a presidential visit during the weekend of Super Bowl 59, as the reigning champion Kansas City Chiefs take on the Philadelphia Eagles at the Caesars Superdome. Local businesses are ready, and hotel demand is surging. Tripadvisor said demand for hotel rooms in New Orleans surged 637% this week as fans of the competing NFL teams scurry to find lodging. Interest from travelers in Pennsylvania and New Jersey has increased more than 14 times, and interest from people in Kansas and Missouri is up 8.5 times since the division championship games in the last week of January, the travel site said. As of Thursday morning, the average hotel room was going for $650 per night, according to which is owned by Expedia. Caesars has the spotlight, however. Along with naming rights to the New Orleans Saints' stadium, where the NFL championship will be played, Caesars also holds lucrative status as the only casino in New Orleans. The company has rolled out the red carpet with a nearly half-billion-dollar overhaul of what was formerly a Harrah's-branded property, and it is using the big game to introduce the brand to new customers. The biggest football game of the year comes just weeks after a New Year's Day attack that took place in the city's French Quarter and killed 14 people, putting New Orleans on high alert. Security around town is tight. State police, city police and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security all have a heavy presence. At an NFL briefing on Monday, law enforcement said more than 700 different types of Homeland Security officials will be on the ground during the Super Bowl, and that was before President Donald Trump indicated plans to attend the game. 'I am confident that the safest areas to be in the country this weekend is under the security umbrella our team has put together,' said Cathy Lanier, the NFL's chief security officer. Since the Jan. 1 attack in New Orleans, NFL Executive Vice President Jeff Miller said the league has redoubled its safety efforts. 'We added resources, and we feel really good about where we are,' Miller told CNBC.
Yahoo
31-01-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Ahead of Super Bowl, helicopter security flights will measure radiation in New Orleans
Jan. 31 (UPI) -- The Department of Energy said Friday low-altitude helicopter flights to measure background radiation will be done over New Orleans Feb. 2 through Feb. 6 as part of security precautions for the Super Bowl to be played Feb. 9. The DOE's National Nuclear Security Administration will conduct the flights using a Leonardo AW-139 helicopter. In a statement, the DOE said, "The public may see a Leonardo AW-139 helicopter, which is equipped with radiation sensing technology. The helicopter will fly at relatively low levels, and flyovers will only occur during daylight hours." The DOE said the aerial radiation assessments are routine part of conducting security and emergency preparedness activities. NFL chief security officer Cathy Lanier said Thursday Super Bowl fans are likely to notice more visible security presence following the Jan. 1 attack that killed 15 people when Shamsud-Din-Jabbar plowed a truck into a crowd in the city. The DOE said it is making the public aware of the radiation assessment flights in new Orleans Feb. 2-Feb. 6 "so citizens who see the low-flying aircraft are not alarmed." The NNSA's aerial measuring system uses both helicopters and airplanes. It was implemented in 1958 to support the U.S. Geological Survey. According to DOE, the AMS allows scientists to communicate in real time with National Laboratories experts to support rapid protective action decisions. The AMS fleet consists of two Beechcraft BN-350 Extended Range fixed-wing aircraft and two helicopters. AMS was used first operationally in nuclear arms testing at the Nevada Test Site to measure radiation levels above ground after underground nuclear weapons tests. AMS helicopters were also used during the 1979 Three Mile Island accident.
NBC Sports
31-01-2025
- Politics
- NBC Sports
Congressional delegation will review Super Bowl security
There's no place safer than the Super Bowl. After a New Year's terrorist attack in New England, however, the federal government hopes to ensure its safety. reports that a congressional delegation will visit New Orleans on Monday to review the security plan for the Super Bowl, to be played on Sunday, February 9. Representative Dale Strong (R-Ala.) will lead the group. He's the chair of the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Emergency Management and Technology. Extra steps include bag checks at checkpoints in the French Quarter between February 5 and 10. Also, vehicle traffic will be restricted in the area, and coolers and ice chests will be prohibited. Earlier this week, NFL chief security officer Cathy Lanier discussed the security challenges with reporters. 'I think the most important thing is, very clear and unequivocal, saying without hesitation that we are really confident in our security plan going into the Super Bowl,' Lanier said, via the Associated Press. 'I feel very confident that we're going to the Super Bowl in an environment that people are going to feel comfortable, they're going to feel safe and they're going to enjoy the Super Bowl.' The event will feature a more visible law-enforcement presence. Which might not necessarily make people feel more comfortable, but which will definitely make them feel more safe.
Yahoo
30-01-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
NFL plans more visible security presence at Super Bowl after Jan. 1 attack
Jan. 30 (UPI) -- Fans in New Orleans for Super Bowl LIX will likely notice heavier security presence as the NFL stepped up efforts for increased visibility in the city after the Jan. 1 attack, chief security officer Cathy Lanier said. Super Bowl LIX will be held Feb. 9 in New Orleans, but hundreds of thousands of other people are expected to descend on the city throughout next week to participate in other events. Like in past years, Super Bowl LIX was classified as a Special Event Assessment Rating (SEAR) Level I event by the Department of Homeland Security. "We are really confident in our security plan going into the Super Bowl in New Orleans," Lanier said. "We are working now, coming up on two years, with federal, state and local partners on this plan. We feel very confident that this team is ready." Lanier did not specify an exact number of law enforcement officers who will be involved in the effort, but said there will be thousands. The game will be held about a month after Shamsud-Din-Jabbar drove a truck into a crowd in the city's French Quarter, resulting in 15 deaths. Several investigations into how the attacker managed to drive the truck through the area are still underway. "It's natural to ask if we've changed things since the attacks on Jan. 1, and of course the short answer is yes," Lanier said. "But I want to remind people, to be clear, that our planning and security is continually reviewed. We review, enhance, and modify our security plans based on the latest information that we have." Lanier said she is confident that guests will feel "comfortable and safe" during their experiences in New Orleans. New Orleans Gov. Jeff Landry issued an executive order Wednesday to amend the State of Emergency issued on New Year's Day in response to the attack. The measure will allow for an enhanced security zone in the french quarter. Police also increased security measures with more barriers and wedges throughout the French Quarter and Bourbon Street. The security zones feature checkpoints, allowing officers to request bag searches. Coolers, ice chests and large bags are banned in the areas. Cars are not allowed to enter the zones, unless they are used for emergency purposes. "I think the biggest thing that you'll see that's different following the attacks after Jan. 1, is just a lot more visible law enforcement presence and hardened security perimeters," Lanier said. "We have a very large perimeter around the stadium, so I think that's going to be the most visible thing that you'll see. "We are still prepared to make new modifications should something change between now and the Super Bowl. That's kind of our job is to be flexible and make changes, as needed." Lanier flew to New Orleans the day of the attack to work with local agencies and gather information that she could use to change or improve the NFL's Super Bowl security plan. "It was very beneficial for me," she said. The NFL has not received information on any specific, credible threats to the Super Bowl since Jan. 1.
Yahoo
30-01-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Super Bowl 59: NFL says security will be ‘more visible' in New Orleans after Bourbon Street attack
The NFL has ramped up its security plan for the Super Bowl in the wake of the deadly attack on Bourbon Street on New Year's Day. The Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles will square off in Super Bowl LIX at the Caesar's Superdome in New Orleans on Feb. 9. The NFL has been working on security plans for the game for over a year, though Cathy Lanier, the league's chief security officer, confirmed that it has since revisited and reassessed those plans after the attack in the city. Among other things, Lanier said officers will be much 'more visible' both around the stadium and throughout the city. 'I think you're going to see more visible uniformed presence, uniformed law enforcement,' Lanier told The Washington Post. 'And obviously there's a significant amount of law enforcement dedicated to this event, so more uniformed and non-uniformed law enforcement. You'll just see our security perimeter is normally pretty large and pretty significant for the Super Bowl. That's not going to change. But you'll see a lot more resources, a lot more people, a lot more law enforcement specifically.' Officials said that a man drove a rented pickup truck through a crowd of people celebrating on Bourbon Street in New Orleans early on New Year's Day, killing 14 people and injuring dozens of others. The man, identified as a 42-year-old army veteran from Texas, was later killed in a shootout with police. The attack resulted in the Sugar Bowl matchup between Notre Dame and Georgia being postponed. That game, part of the expanded College Football Playoff, was then held on Jan. 2 without issue at the Superdome. Regardless of where it is held, the Super Bowl is considered a Special Event Assessment Rating Level 1 event, which is defined as 'significant events with national and/or international importance that require extensive federal interagency support,' per The Washington Post. There are already numerous security measures in place, including temporary flight restrictions above the stadium and numerous federal agencies on the ground to assist with security. 'Obviously everybody at the NFL and everybody else that's involved in this planning effort is very saddened by the events of January 1 but also watching very closely,' Lanier said. 'So we know that security is top of mind for everyone as we go into this planning process, the last stages of the planning. But this is an effort that's been underway for 18 months.' While the city is only a few weeks removed from the New Year's Day attack, Lanier also confirmed that there are 'no known or credible threats at all' for the Super Bowl. At least from her side of things, it should feel relatively normal in New Orleans. 'My guess would be people who attend multiple Super Bowls, it's going to feel a lot like every other Super Bowl,' she said. 'There's always a lot of security. My guess is you're going to see more visible security. I think you're going to see more uniformed police officers walking around. I think you're going to see more engagement by police talking with people, engaging with people, trying to make people feel like they are safe.'
