The FBI has released a statement which says the person who drove the car into a crowd of people is dead and the attack is being investigated as an "act of terrorism".

"This morning, an individual drove a car into a crowd of people on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, killing a number of people and injuring dozens of others," it reads.

The statement adds that the person then "engaged with local law enforcement and is now deceased".

"The FBI is the lead investigative agency, and we are working with our partners to investigate this as an act of terrorism," it concludes.

The driver of the vehicle has died, US media outlets are reporting.

The BBC's US partner, CBS News, says two sources have confirmed this - but it also reports that his cause of death is not yet clear.

During a press conference a short while ago, New Orleans police superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick said there are 10 people dead and at least 35 people injured as a result of this morning's attack.

Here's what else we know about the casualties:

• Two of the injured are police officers, who were shot by the suspect. They're in stable condition
• Police say they believe most of the injured are local to New Orleans
• Twenty six people have been taken to the University Medical Centre
• Four people are at Touro Hospital
• A further four are in Ochsner Baptist Campus
• One person has been taken to Tulane Medical Centre
• It's believed one person is at another hospital, but it's unconfirmed

We're just hearing from Missy Wilkinson, a local crime reporter, who says the attack this morning in New Orleans has struck "at the core of our celebrations".

Wilkinson describes the French Quarter as a "densely populated" tourist entertainment district with Bourbon Street at the "epicentre of activity", filled with bars and clubs.

The reporter, who is speaking outside one of the hospitals where people injured in the attack are being treated, tells BBC News Channel that the attack has "struck at the core of New Orleans' history".

As we've been reporting, at approximately 03:15 local time (09:15 GMT), a man drove a pick-up truck into a large crowd in New Orleans, Louisiana.

The suspect fired on police from his vehicle and injured two police officers. Police returned fire.

Ten people are dead and at least 35 more are injured.

The area is a popular tourist district in the southern city's French Quarter, and many people would have been out celebrating new year.

US President Joe Biden has recently been briefed on the "horrific news that a driver killed and injured dozens of individuals in New Orleans overnight", the White House says.

In a statement, it adds that the president has been in touch with New Orleans mayor, LaToya Cantrell, to offer support.

The president will continue to be briefed throughout the day, it adds.

Image source, Getty Images

More details are starting to emerge about a mass casualty event that occurred in a busy tourist destination in New Orleans on New Year's Day.

Here's what you need to know:

• At 03:15 local time (09:15 GMT), a man drove a pick-up truck at high speed into a large crowd of people on Bourbon Street and then fired on police from his vehicle

• Ten people have been killed, and at least 35 more are injured - including two police officers
• New Orleans Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick says the suspect displayed "very intentional behaviour" and he was "trying to run over as many people as he possibly could"
• She adds that the individual was "hell-bent on creating the carnage and damage he did"
• The FBI is taking over the investigation and Special Agent Althea Duncan says they found a possible explosive device at the scene. Authorities are working to find out if it is "viable"
• People are urged to avoid the area as the investigation continues

Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick returns and ends the news conference by telling residents to go about their day as normal.

She says law enforcement officers will be working to keep the city's Superdome stadium safe ahead of the Sugar Bowl college American football match tonight.

She reiterates that residents should avoid the area around Bourbon Street.

With that, she says more information will follow at 11:00 local time (17:00 GMT).

Special Agent Alethea Duncan of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is speaking now. She has taken over the investigation.

"This is not a terrorist event," she says. This contradicts the mayor, who earlier described it as such.

It's not clear why the FBI's and the mayor's descriptions of the incident differ but we're working to find out more.

Duncan goes on to say there is a possible explosive device found at the scene and authorities are working to find out if it is "viable".

She stresses that the public should stay away from the area "until we can figure out what is going on".

The superintendent says the FBI will be taking over the investigation into the incident in New Orleans.

The superintendent says, despite more than 300 officers being present last night, the attack was "intentional" and the perpetrator drove around police barricades.

She adds the individual was "hell-bent on creating the carnage and damage he did".

Kirkpatrick continues by saying that, at this time, authorities have limited information about those who are in hospital right now.

It is unclear how many victims are tourists and how many are locals, she adds. However, they believe that the majority are local to New Orleans.

The driver fired on police officers from his vehicle she says.

Two officers have been shot, she says, but their condition is stable.

We're hearing from superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick now, who begins by saying the incident began at 3:15 local time (09:15 GMT).

She says a man drove a pick up truck "down Bourbon Street at a very fast pace".

Kirkpatrick says the man displayed "very intentional behaviour" and he was "trying to run over as many people as he possibly could".

The superintendent says numbers could change, but confirmed 10 people have been killed and at least 35 others injured.

New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell says the exact details of the incident are under investigation, adding that she has been in touch with the White House and Louisiana's governor.

She is asking "for prayers for those who have lost their lives", and adds by asking the public to avoid the eight blocks around Bourbon Street, where the incident occurred.

We're about to receive an update on the mass casualty incident from New Orleans mayor LaToya Cantrell and police superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick.

We'll bring you the key lines, but you can also follow live by clicking Watch live above. Stick with us.

A witness who was on Bourbon Street this morning at the time of the incident has just shared some of the harrowing scenes he saw after a vehicle crashed into a large crowd in New Orleans.

Whit Davis, from Shreveport, Louisiana, tells the BBC: "We had been on and around Bourbon Street since the beginning of the evening.

"When we were in the bar we didn’t hear shooting or crashes because the music was so loud," Davis says. People then started running and hiding under tables, he adds, "like it was an active shooter drill".

Police then held him and a group of people in the bar and when they were allowed to leave, he says they "were walking past dead and injured bodies all over the street".

As we've been reporting, 10 people are dead and several more injured after a vehicle drove into a crowd on Bourbon Street in the southern US city of New Orleans.

The street is famous in New Orleans' French Quarter and is likely to have been filled with tourists and locals celebrating the new year.

The street, a well-known nightlife and tourist hotspot, is filled with bars, clubs and restaurants.

Image source, Getty Images

Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry says in a post on X that he is "praying for all the victims and first responders on scene".

"A horrific act of violence took place on Bourbon Street earlier this morning," Landry writes.

"Please join Sharon and I in praying for all the victims and first responders on scene. I urge all near the scene to avoid the area."

As we've been reporting, at least 10 people have died after a person drove a car into a crowd on Bourbon Street in the French Quarter of New Orleans.

Footage from the scene shows a large number of police vehicles in the area:

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Ten people have died following a mass casualty event in New Orleans, city authorities say.

Officials with Nola Ready, the city's emergency preparedness department, report that a further 30 people are injured.

Wounded people have been transported to hospital, and public safety partners are on scene, Nola Ready adds.