"Families Grieve and Seek Answers After New Orleans Tragedy"
In the final hours of 2024, Jack Bech, 22, shared a heartfelt call with his older brother, Martin—affectionately known as “Tiger” to those close to him. Jack was visiting family in Dallas, while 28-year-old Tiger, a Princeton alumnus and avid outdoorsman, prepared to ring in the New Year in New Orleans.
What seemed like an ordinary sibling conversation turned out to be their last.
“I never imagined it would be the final time we’d speak,” Jack shared. Hours later, tragedy struck when an attacker drove a truck through a crowd on Bourbon Street, killing Tiger and 13 others.
A City Shattered
The attack, carried out by 42-year-old army veteran Shamsud-Din Jabbar, left devastation in its wake. Authorities reported that Jabbar, who had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State in videos, acted alone. He was fatally shot by police after the rampage.
As New Orleans struggles to process the attack, families of the victims are grappling with unimaginable loss. Many of those killed, like Tiger, were young and local to Louisiana, leaving tight-knit communities in mourning.
Jack described his brother as more than a sibling—he was a best friend and an inspiration. “Tiger wouldn’t want us to dwell in sorrow,” Jack said. “He’d want us to keep pushing forward and supporting one another.”
The Bech family, based in Lafayette, 136 miles from New Orleans, is determined to honor Tiger’s memory. “Every holiday will feel different now,” Jack said. “But instead of a few visits a year, he’ll be with us always, in spirit.”
Another Life Cut Short
Among the victims was 25-year-old Matthew Tenedorio, an audio-visual technician at New Orleans’ Caesars Superdome. He spent New Year’s Eve with family in Slidell, just outside the city, before heading to New Orleans with friends—against his family’s pleas to stay.
His cousin, Christina Bounds, described the family’s heartbreak. “We begged him not to go,” she said. Hours later, his mother received a chilling call from one of Matthew’s friends, who recounted seeing a body hurled into the air by the attacker’s truck.
In the chaos, Matthew became separated from his friends. His family believes he was fatally shot during the exchange of gunfire between police and the attacker. However, they remain in the dark about the exact circumstances of his death.
“There’s been no clear communication from authorities or hospitals,” Bounds said. “We don’t even know if he died instantly or was taken to the hospital. That lack of information makes everything harder to process.”
The family has launched a GoFundMe campaign to help cover funeral costs, compounded by medical bills from Matthew’s mother’s recent cancer treatment.
Remembering the Victims
Matthew’s cousin, Zach Colgan, reflected on the vibrant personality they lost. “He was a goofball, always ready with a joke,” he said. “He loved animals and storytelling. Losing him to something so senseless is devastating.”
Though Colgan understands the challenges law enforcement faces in such emergencies, he emphasized the importance of providing families with closure. “If it were my child, I’d want answers.”
Even amid their grief, the victims’ families hope the focus remains on honoring those lost. “These were people with dreams, families, and futures,” Colgan said. “They deserve to be remembered, not reduced to numbers in a tragedy.”
As New Orleans mourns, the voices of grieving families echo one unified sentiment: “No one deserves this.”
