The 2020 Mardi Gras Killings in New Orleans

The 2020 Mardi Gras in New Orleans has witnessed the killing of two people who attended the parade. 

Each float was driven by a tractor. This was seen at the remaining period of the Carnival season in 2020, according to an article from MSN. 

The Two Deaths in the Parade

An unnamed man was reported by police to have lost his life after being struck by a float on Saturday evening.

The man was the second death in the 2020 Carnival parade. The first was Geraldine Carmouche, 58 years old. Carmouche was also reported to have died from being crushed by afloat. She was a resident of New Orleans. When she was trying to cross the street while the parade was ongoing on Wednesday, she tripped over a hitch that links two floats and that caused her demise.

One of the many social organizations that participated in the Mardi Gras float parade in the past week, Mystic Krewe of Nyx, was passing through the streets when their float crushed Carmouche. However, some stories say that Carmouche was trying to cross the street to witness her cousin who was part of the Mystic Krewe of Nyx's float. Others speculate that Carmouche was trying to pick beads that had fallen to the ground. 

The two deaths had shocked parade-goers. The two different parades where the deaths had occurred were canceled.

A Video Recording of the Tragedy

A local news reporter who was at the actual parade on Saturday evening shared a video on social media that showed the float parade being filled with a response team and a group of concerned parade-goers after witnessing the killing of the man. 

The video also revealed the sounds of sirens from a far distance. According to the reporter's tweet, he heard screams coming from the parade. He was also able to witness CPR being conducted on the victim's body. Then, he saw the body of the victim being covered by a sheet. 

The Mayor's Statement About Safety

In a social media post by Mayor LaToya Cantrell, he described the two deaths as an "unimaginable burden to bear" for the entire town. He also said that people should wait for the results of the investigation. He was saddened to have witnessed such a dreadful Mardi Gras event during the celebration of a festive activity for the city. He also emphasized the importance of the serious observation of safety during the celebration of the Carnival season and other parades.

Cantrell stressed that the city will continue to implement boundaries where parade-goers will be standing. 

Deaths from the Parade

A float in the Endymion parade was the same float that killed a person in 2008. This is just one of the many deaths witnessed in the parade before the recent death last week.

The 2008 tragedy occurred when a rider was getting out of a three-part float when it suddenly moved forward and crushed him. 

Another death was in 2009 when a 23-year-old rider had fallen to his death when he dropped from the float and was run over by it. 

Last year, a vehicle had hit nine people and taken the lives of two bicyclists close to the route of the parade.